A shooting early Sunday morning at a Fort Worth hookah bar franchise left two people injured, one in critical condition.
The Fort Worth Police Department’s Gang Unit is investigating a violent episode at the Cru Lounge located in the 6300 block of Hulen Bend Boulevard. A woman and a man were shot at around 2 a.m., with no further information provided in terms of the circumstances and the suspect.
The man is said to be in critical condition, while the woman has non-life-threatening injuries, according to NBC 5 DFW.
Cru Lounge is a franchise offering different cocktail and hookah options, with locations in several states, including four in Texas.
The chain made headlines last September in Washington, D.C., after a fatal shooting took place there. D.C. Police Chief Pamela A. Smith later cited “lax security protocols” when ordering the business to close temporarily, according to The Washington Post.
Another fatal shooting earlier this year at a Cru Lounge location in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, led to the Tuscaloosa City Council revoking the establishment’s license last month.
A club located near the Fort Worth location saw a stabbing and shooting last August in what was reported by police as likely involving gang activity, per CBS News Texas. Both victims sustained non-life-threatening injuries.
Despite these incidents, Fort Worth’s city center consistently puts up lower rates of crime than Downtown Dallas, per studies conducted each month by the Metroplex Civic & Business Association. In January, the latter saw roughly 24 times more auto thefts, six times more assaults, and 35 times more criminal property damage complaints compared to the former.
While Fort Worth patrols its downtown area with private security guards and a dedicated neighborhood police unit, the Dallas Police Department has been laboring under significant staffing shortages. Just 3,000 DPD officers patrol the city streets, whereas an analysis from City leaders previously recommended a force of 4,000 to adequately promote public safety.
DPD was recently budgeted just $654 million for the fiscal year, which falls far short of the spending on police seen in other high-crime jurisdictions like New York City, Los Angeles, and Chicago.