A Navy veteran is claiming that he was beaten and called racial slurs by white bouncers at a Dallas strip club last week.
“They punched, stomped and grabbed my throat with such force I felt my trachea beginning to snap,” Jalen Bell wrote on Facebook alongside graphic photos of himself wearing a neck brace.
Bell claims that he was enjoying a night out at XTC Cabaret last week when he accidentally set his drink down in a reserved area of the club. One of the patrons there decided to put a cigarette out in his drink in retaliation. An argument ensued, and when Bell decided to leave with friends, they were attacked at the door by the club’s bouncers without provocation. Bells says that they were beaten “like animals” before being kicked out.
Photos of Bell show his face marked black and blue from severe bruising and injuries.
“I am a U.S. Navy Veteran and I understand sometimes people do terrible things for no reason at all,” he said in his Facebook post. “These men attacked me and my friend because they could. We were black and vulnerable and they don’t believe that the law will have any consequences for them. This is not ok.”
The club responded to Bell’s claims, saying that they were investigating the incident, according to NBC Dallas.
“XTC Cabaret Dallas has a zero-tolerance policy for any kind of discrimination. Our club has a very diverse clientele, equally diverse management, and staff, and has been in business a long time,” they said in a statement.
“Our initial understanding is that this incident involved what was deemed to be an unruly customer. We are continuing to investigate the incident internally and ask the community to be patient until that is concluded.”
Bell has retained well-known Texas lawyer Lee Merritt as his counsel.