Officer wounded, gunman killed in sports bar shootout

Jace Radke

Monday, Dec. 6, 1999 | 12:30 p.m.

Members of a rock 'n' roll band that included Metro Police officers were among those diving for cover early Sunday when four masked gunmen began shooting in a western Las Vegas sports bar.

About 50 people were at Mr. D's, 1810 S. Rainbow Blvd., about 1 a.m. listening to a set by Pigs in a Blanket, a five-piece band including three Metro officers, when the shooting began.

An off-duty police officer, who was in the audience, was wounded as he exchanged gunfire with the intruders, and one of the masked gunmen was killed.

"They just came in yelling to get down and started shooting," one band member said. "First they shot a man by the door and then they just started shooting at everyone. It wasn't a robbery attempt. You don't just go in shooting if you're committing a robbery."

Police say, however, that the four men wearing bandanas or T-shirts over their faces probably were trying to rob the bar. One of the intruders tried to jump over the bar but was pulled back by patrons.

An officer in the audience at the small bar fired at the intruders, hitting one and forcing the other three to flee, police said. The officer, whose name has not been released, was shot four times in the exchange. He was listed in fair condition this morning at University Medical Center recovering from gunshot wounds in the abdomen, groin, right leg and right hand.

The gunman who was shot, 19-year-old Emilio Rodriguez of Las Vegas, managed to stumble out the front door of the bar before collapsing and dying, police said.

At least three of the intruders fired their weapons inside the bar, and police are still searching for the three men who escaped, Capt. Greg Jolley said.

Five other people -- who were not off-duty police officers -- were also shot as bullets flew through the bar, including a 54-year-old man.

"He's paraplegic and was in his wheelchair and couldn't get out of the way," the victim's wife said. "It all happened so close to us, I don't know why I wasn't shot."

A bullet lodged itself in the man's right shoulder, and he remains in serious condition at UMC, a nursing supervisor said.

The other four victims, a 26-year-old man shot in the right arm, a 27-year-old man shot in the right shoulder, a 35-year-old man hit in the left hip, and a 30-year-old man struck in the right shoulder, were all treated and released from UMC.

The 54-year-old man's wife suffered a small burn on the back of her neck from one of the hot shell casings spilling out of the guns onto the barroom floor.

"It was so unbelievable," she said. "All we heard was someone yelling to get down and then the pop, pop, pop of the guns. Everything was in chaos."

The bar sits at the southeast corner of Rainbow and Oakey boulevards, with the front door opening to a traditional bar area on the left and restaurant-style seating on the right where there's a small stage and a projection television.

The victim's daughter said she wasn't sure where the off-duty officer was when he began shooting, but she is glad he did.

"He probably saved all our lives," she said. "All of us could have been killed, but he took those bullets to save us."

Ironically, one of the suspects was reportedly wearing a Dallas Cowboys jacket; the bar is known as a hangout for Cowboy fans. The walls inside the bar are covered with Cowboy memorabilia, and just hours after the shooting Mr. D's was reopened in time for Sunday night's Cowboys and New England Patriots game.

"It's weird to think that a shooting happened here just a little while ago," Jeff Barnes said as he arrived at the bar Sunday afternoon to cheer on the Cowboys. "You'd never have known a shooting had taken place. I guess it can happen anywhere."

Management at the bar had no comment on the shootings except for a bartender who said, "We're not talking about it, and anyone in here that is gets thrown out."