HOUSTON – Following six days of testimony, a Harris County jury has awarded Kacy Clemens and Conner Capel $3.24 million in damages for being assaulted at the Concrete Cowboy Bar two years ago.
Kacy Clemens is the son of famed pitcher Roger Clemens. Conner Capel is the son of former Astros pitcher Mike Capel.
According to court documents, on Jan. 1, 2019, Clemens and Capel, who were both minor league players at the time, were at Concrete Cowboy. As they approached the bar, a bouncer told Capel to move. Capel did, but apparently not to the liking of the Concrete Cowboy bouncer, who “violently began attacking.”
Clemens and Capel had joined some friends for a New Year’s Eve celebration.
During the assault, Conner was put in a chokehold and then picked up and carried out by four bouncers when he witnessed the bar’s owner, Daniel J. Wierck, strike him on the head with a flashlight. He suffered a skull fracture above his left eye requiring internal and external wound repair.
Kacy Clemens, Conner’s life-long friend, was standing near-by and attempted to diffuse the situation. Kacy was grabbed around the neck and put in a chokehold. He was picked up also and carried out, with someone else striking him several times in the ribs. Once outside, Kacy was thrown to the ground landing on his right elbow, which is his throwing elbow. His elbow swelled up immediately and limited Kacy’s training regimen.
At trial, the jury found no negligence on the part of Kacy or Conner, placing all the blame on the bar and Wierck, according to the jury charge, which was filed on Feb. 5.
“Both young men feel both exonerated and appreciative of the jury’s verdict,” said Randy Sorrels, attorney for Kacy and Conner. “These last two years of exposing the bar’s cover up of these attacks have been challenging – and now rewarding. Kacy and Conner never did anything to prompt or start any problems or violence, and the jury correctly held the bar and bar owner 100 percent responsible.”
The trial was held under strict Covid protocols mandated for the Harris County Courthouse. The case was tried in the 113th District Court of Harris County, Texas where Judge Rabeea Collier presided over the jury trial.
Case No. 2019-07278