Klamath Falls, ORE– A four-year battle for civil rights against the city of Klamath Falls is set to go to trial this week.
The U.S. District Court of Oregon in Medford will hear the case of Cisneros v. City of Klamath Falls, a legal contest that harkens back to the days when Commissioner Dave Henslee was police chief and crowds packed the streets of Klamath Falls every weekend.
The lawsuit was filed by family owners and founders of El Palacio Restaurant Elizabeth and Antonio Cisneros and their son, Carlos Faiers.
The family filed a complaint for civil rights violations and intentional infliction of emotional distress against the city and multiple officials, staff as well as the former chief of police, Dave Henslee.
Cisneros and son, say they were unfairly targeted by the former chief based on their ethnicity citing a recording they made in 2016 where Henslee is recorded saying “It’s not your bar that’s the problem, it’s the people and your culture.” He was also heard saying that the El Palacio needs to be “pulled up like a weed.”
