Breitbart – by Bob PriceHOUSTON, Texas — A uniformed Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) Trooper was asked to leave a Waffle House restaurant in Grapevine this week because he was armed. The trooper was wearing a Texas DPS helicopter pilot “field uniform” that consists of a DPS polo shirt, tan slacks and his badge and gun were on his belt. Trooper was asked to leave and not to return because he was wearing a gun.
Breitbart Texas spoke with Trooper Evans via Facebook Messenger. He said he could not comment directly to the media about the matter. From postings on his Facebook page, Breitbart Texas learned the trooper was on his way to work and was standing at the cash register when the manager of the Waffle House began yelling at him from the doorway of the kitchen telling him that he had to leave and he was not welcome back to the restaurant. Despite Evan’s explanation that he was a law enforcement officer with the DPS and he was in uniform, the manager persisted in his rant.
“So I just got asked to leave the Waffle House in Grapevine!” Evans said on Facebook. “Apparently my Department Approved DPS Aircraft Uniform is not welcome there. I was asked to leave by the management and was also instructed not to return.”
“They said it was because I was wearing a gun,” he explained. “I was in uniform, TX DPS Polo Shirt and Tan pants, with my badge visibly displayed on my belt. I explained to the manager that I am a state trooper and he said I still wasn’t allowed to have a gun in the restaurant.”
The reaction against the manager and Waffle House on Facebook was predictably angry that a uniformed police officer would be thrown out of a restaurant.
CBS DFW’s Bud Gillett reported that Waffle House said the manager simply missed seeing the badge on the trooper’s belt. They admitted it was inappropriate for him to chastise the trooper in front of other patrols. In a press release sent to CBS DFW, Waffle House spokesman Pat Warner said:
“It is Waffle House policy to allow police officers to bring weapons into our restaurants. In this incident, the manager did not initially see the officer’s badge and should have handled the issue with more discretion. We apologize to the officer for any embarrassment we may have caused him. Our corporate Director of Security has contacted the officer, explained our policy and apologized to him. We have also coached our team on how to better handle these situations.”
Trooper Evans lives in the San Antonio area according to his Facebook page. He was in North Texas on official business. The trooper also has been deployed to the Texas/Mexico border as part of Operation Strong Safety. He is a U.S. Navy Veteran, having served in the late 1990s.
Evans posted on Facebook that the real issue to him was how the manager handled the situation by embarrassing him in front of other customers in the Waffle House. “I could care less if the guy knew who I was or weather he recognized my uniform or not,” Evans explained, “it was the fact that he felt yelling at me from across the restaurant was an appropriate way of addressing his concerns.”
Workers at the Waffle House told CBS DFW it was just a misunderstanding. They said they support police officers and even offer a police discount.
Bob Price is a staff writer and a member of the original Breitbart Texas team. Follow him on Twitter @BobPriceBBTX.
“The trooper was wearing a Texas DPS helicopter pilot “field uniform” that consists of a DPS polo shirt, tan slacks and his badge and gun were on his belt. Trooper was asked to leave and not to return because he was wearing a gun.”
It wasn’t the gun they were afraid of.
It was the trigger finger behind it.
“They said it was because I was wearing a gun,” he explained. “I was in uniform, TX DPS Polo Shirt and Tan pants, with my badge visibly displayed on my belt. I explained to the manager that I am a state trooper and he said I still wasn’t allowed to have a gun in the restaurant.”
I’m not sure what to say about this. Grapevine is about 20 minutes from where I live. Waffle House is known to be all American but when I see that they reject someone because of a gun, I don’t know. I mean yea, it was a DPS agent but if the manager was kicking him out because he saw the gun first and not the badge (which is strange seeing as how he was in uniform and his badge was in plain view), then that would make it sound like Waffle House was anti-gun and going against the Constitution.
““It is Waffle House policy to allow police officers to bring weapons into our restaurants.”
So does that mean non-police officers aren’t allowed? I’m curious about that statement.