Lawsuit Links Crockett Street Bar, Restaurant to Woman's Death

A father has filed a lawsuit against the Crockett Street Dining and Entertainment District, alleging employees at a bar and restaurant continued serving alcohol to his daughter even though she was intoxicated, contributing to her May, 2006 death when her SUV crashed into a tree and burned.

According to the lawsuit, the woman began drinking and became intoxicated in a demonstration put on by the Texas Department of Public Safety to highlight the dangers of drinking and driving.

The father of Shannon Seidel is suing the Texas Star Bar and the Spindletop Steakhouse, claiming employees didn't observe  warning signs his daughter was drunk.

The lawsuit states Seidel took part in a DPS seminar at Lamar University on May 10, 2006, and was legally intoxicated before she arrived to drink at the Texas Star Bar and Spindletop Steakhouse.

The lawsuit alleges Seidel left Crockett Street that evening, hit a tree on Burrell Wingate Road and died.

According to the lawsuit her father filed, she became legally intoxicated at a Department of Public Safety program at Lamar University.

Volunteers are provided alcohol under controlled conditions, according to the suit, to demonstrate the impact of alcohol on the body and brain.

The suit says she left Lamar and came to the Star Bar and Spindletop for more drinks, and died in the accident after leaving.

Her father and her child are listed as plaintiffs in the lawsuit.

It states she was "... intoxicated to the extent she presented a clear danger to herself and others .. as employees continued to serve her alcohol before she left."

The president of Crockett Street Dining and Entertainment says all of the employees are trained to look for signs of intoxication and do whatever they can to help keep someone who's legally drunk safe and off the road.

"We're conscientious all the time. We want to make sure people come out to Crockett Street, enjoy Crockett Street, and get a ride home safely," says Jeff McCarson, the President of Crockett Street Dinning and Entertainment.

McCarson says water, tea coffee and cokes are all free to designated drivers, and they suggest anyone who drinks makes sure someone else brings them home.

The father is suing on behalf of Seidel's child and her estate, including funeral expenses, the cost of medical care and her pain and mental anguish before she died.

We contacted the DPS to find out what guidelines are in place for students who take part in the demonstration involving alcohol.  A spokesperson wasn't available for comment.

A Lamar University spokesman told us he doesn't believe the demonstration took place at LU.