4 charged in suspected drunken driving crash that killed Clear Lake mom, baby Bartender is charged with failing to check IDs

Amy Lynn Allen, a bartender at Crescent City Connection Sports & Oyster Bar on El Camino Real, is charged with acting with criminal negligence after she allegedly allowed 20-year-old Veronica Rivas to drink alcohol at the bar. After leaving the bar, Rivas was involved in an alleged drunk driving crash that killed a Clear Lake mother and her baby. This mugshot is a file image from 2013. less Amy Lynn Allen, a bartender at Crescent City Connection Sports & Oyster Bar on El Camino Real, is charged with acting with criminal negligence after she allegedly allowed 20-year-old Veronica Rivas to drink ... more Photo: Harris County District Attorney's Office Photo: Harris County District Attorney's Office Image 1 of / 15 Caption Close 4 charged in suspected drunken driving crash that killed Clear Lake mom, baby 1 / 15 Back to Gallery

As part of a new crackdown on drunken driving, Harris County prosecutors charged three people — including a Houston-area bartender — with helping provide alcohol to the underage woman who was behind the wheel during a crash a few hours later that killed a woman and her infant son.

Amy L. Allen, a bartender at the Crescent City Connection Sports & Oyster Bar near Clear Lake, is charged with criminal negligence, accused of failing to check identifications for Veronica Rivas, 20, of Bacliff, and a 17-year-old friend, prosecutors said Thursday.

Two others — the bar owner's son, Devin Jackson, 24, and another man, John C. Medina, 23 — are accused of knowingly purchasing and providing alcohol to a minor, a class C misdemeanor, prosecutors said. Medina is also accused of lying to a grand jury.

Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg said the charges are the first prosecution from a new task force created to tackle drunken driving and roadway fatalities, and she vowed to pursue charges against other bars that serve underage people or otherwise enable drunken driving.

"We've always gone after the driver," Ogg said, "but we think communities want more. This is extraordinary and (the defendants) are going to face serious criminal penalty."

Sean Teare, head of the Vehicular Crimes Division of the Harris County District Attorney's Office, said he hoped the charges would serve as a warning to other bar owners.

"I hope this causes people to be more responsible, because if you're not, we will hold you responsible," he said. "The people of Harris County are tired of this. I am tired of this, of standing over babies and dead people on the road."

Texas led the nation with 3,776 drunk-driving related fatalities in 2016, and Houston led the state with 89 fatal DUI crashes, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety.

"We are ground zero for alcohol-related car crashes and deaths in the United States," Ogg said. "We really couldn't do worse than our current record."

Rivas was charged with intoxication manslaughter earlier this week in the Feb. 28 deaths of Shayla Joseph, 36, and her infant son, Braylan, of Clear Lake. If convicted, Rivas could face up to 40 years in prison.

Court records on Thursday did not list attorneys for Jackson, Medina or Allen, and the three could not be reached by phone for comment.

A woman, who did not give her name, answered the phone Thursday at the Crescent City bar and said no managers or owners wanted to comment.

"Honey, we don't have any comment, and please don't call here again," she said, before hanging up.

Investigators said Rivas and her 17-year-old friend were served several tequila margaritas at the Crescent City Connection the evening before Rivas' car slammed into Joseph's Toyota Scion about 3:50 a.m. at the Gulf Freeway feeder road near El Dorado. Rivas was driving about 90 miles per hour, investigators said.

Ogg said prosecutors generally focus on the driver but not those who served the alcohol, as allowed under Texas law.

"The public expects everyone who caused the crime to be held responsible," Ogg said. "But as a former line prosecutor, I can tell you, that's not the practice of most prosecutors in Harris County or much of the U.S. "

Officials with the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission said Crescent City Connection is owned by Orleans Parish Ventures, Inc., which listed a Friendswood address. The company has not had any public safety violations in recent years, but have been cited twice for failing to pay suppliers.

The first case, in 2016, led to warnings from the state commission. On Tuesday, April 3, the company agreed to pay $1,400 in fines for failing to pay a supplier, according to Chris Porter, TABC public information officer.

St. John Barned-Smith covers public safety and major breaking news for the Houston Chronicle. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. Send tips to st.john.smith@chron.com.