- Joseph Gray, 26, was shot and killed while working an extra security shift at a Deep Ellum restaurant on Cinco de Mayo.
- He had taken on extra hours to save money for his girlfriend, who is three months pregnant with their first child.
- Dallas police arrested Detorius Tarver, 23, at the scene and charged him with murder.
- His family is now demanding answers about how a gun got inside the venue.
DALLAS, Texas — He was not even supposed to be there that night.
Joseph Gray, 26, had the day off. But with a baby on the way and bills to plan for, he picked up an extra security shift at La Tardeada, a restaurant and club in Deep Ellum.
He never made it home.
A Father Who Never Got the Chance
Gray’s girlfriend is three months pregnant. He had been working extra hours to save up before the baby arrived.
“He was excited to be a dad,” his sister Christine Smith said. “It’s all he wanted to be. Just know he is a good man. He cared about his family, and he was a hard worker.”
Smith described her younger brother with a mix of pride and pain.
“I know I’m the oldest, but he’s my little big brother,” she said. “It just hurts that he’s gone over gun violence.”
What Dallas Police Say Happened
According to Dallas police, Gray was working security at the venue on Tuesday night during Cinco de Mayo celebrations when he stepped in to break up a fight.
That is when 23-year-old Detorius Tarver allegedly pulled out a gun and shot him.
Gray was rushed to the hospital, where he later died from his injuries.
Officers arrested Tarver at the scene. He has since been charged with murder.
Family Demands Answers on Venue Safety
Outside La Tardeada, Gray’s family and friends gathered to leave candles and flowers in his memory. But grief quickly turned into hard questions.
“How did a gun get inside?” Smith asked. “Even for the security guards, why are the security guards not protected? He didn’t have a vest on at all.”
The shooting did not happen in isolation. Just two hours earlier, police were already responding to a separate shooting off Commerce Street in the same area that left five people injured — two violent incidents in Deep Ellum on the same night.
“There were two different types of shootings last night, back-to-back,” Smith said. “What’s the point of going to clubs? For what? Somebody else to be dead?”
Push for Policy Change in Deep Ellum
Deep Ellum Foundation Executive Director Stephanie Keller Hudiburg confirmed that extra security officers were already patrolling the district that night due to holiday crowds.
But she acknowledged that is not enough.
“We need policy change, and we need to focus on that… to continue to promote safety for this area,” she said.
The foundation is pushing for a new entertainment permit requirement that would hold late-night venues to consistent safety standards across the entire district. A Dallas City Council committee is expected to be briefed on the proposal soon.
For Gray’s family, the policy conversations cannot come soon enough — and they cannot bring back the son, brother, and soon-to-be father they lost.
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