Star Bar Shooting Victim Speaks Publicly For the First Time

Susan Williams went to Popz Star Bar in La Grange on the evening of Monday, July 28, to visit her friend who worked as the bartender that night. She left in an ambulance with three bullet holes in her legs.

The man who accidentally shot her, Craig Moreau, is now running for Fayette County Judge.

Williams spoke to the newspaper about the incident for the first time last week. She wished to thank the first responders at the scene that night, especially the medics from Fayette County EMS.

“I wouldn’t be here today without them,” she said.

She also wanted to thank everyone who supported her during her recovery and all those who contributed to the fundraiser that was held for her.

“There’s just not enough thank you’s to go around,” Williams said. “There’s no way I can express how grateful I am for everybody that supported me.”

The Record tried contacting Williams for comment in the days after the incident. Williams said she hadn’t spoken publicly sooner on the advice of her attorneys, who were negotiating a settlement for her injuries.

But last week, she decided to speak out.

“I understand that it was an accident,” Williams said. “It wasn’t purposely done. I understand that. But where I’m at with this whole thing is that this man, being in the positions in the county that he’s been in, all of his background, he knows better. He knew that it was unlawful to have that gun in that bar, and yet he still did it.

The Record reached out to Moreau last week for a response to Williams’ questions.

“I will forever detest the pain that my accident caused Ms. Williams,” Moreau said. “I wish that I could reverse the events that occurred, but instead, my family and I will carry that remorse as a very heavy part of our past from now on. I am continually learning from my mistakes. I have and will continue to publicly own my actions and express how deeply sorry I am for the damage that I caused. I am also following the path that I would want for anyone in this community. I pray someone in the same circumstance would humbly recognize what led to their uncharacteristic failure and then pick themselves up with a determination to deliver help to the community.

“I believe I brought muchneeded leadership skills to the political table in 2022, and I still believe that in 2025, although this run is taking more humility, more courage, and an ever-present reliance on God in place of self-reliance,” he added. “My past as a public servant speaks for itself up until the night of July 28th, when I was no longer assisting those in need but instead the source of the injuries to Ms. Williams. I will spend the rest of my life concurrently owning that terrible accident and serving my community in the capacities in which I am needed.”

Williams, a 49-year-old single woman who lives in La Grange with her adult son, said she still feels pain in her legs from the shooting. She suffers from nerve damage and doctors told her to expect lingering pain indefinitely.

Williams detailed her memories of the shooting when she spoke to the Record last week. She said the bar was slow that night with only three customers – herself, Moreau, and one other witness – along with the bartender.

She also wanted to dispel ugly rumors about herself and Moreau that spread following the incident.

“I wasn’t sitting on his lap,” she said. “I’m not his mistress.”

When Williams got to Popz, she said Moreau was sitting at a table working on a laptop computer. She recalled the two of them striking up a strange conversation, considering how the night ended.

“He was talking about how he does active shooter training classes,” Williams said.

Moreau, a retired Houston firefighter, had served as Fayette County Chief of Emergency Management and Homeland Security under former County Judge Joe Weber. In 2022 he ran in the Republican Primary for County Judge but lost to Dan Mueller, who later won the general election. On his first day in office, Mueller dismissed Moreau from his position with the County.

After their conversation at the table, Williams said she went to the bar to speak with her friend, the bartender. A baseball game was playing on the television above the bar. The Texas Rangers faced the Los Angeles Angels that night. Williams said Moreau walked up to the bar, and the bartender went over to him. Williams said she was looking at the television screen, watching the baseball game, when she heard a loud noise.

“All of a sudden, I hear this loud noise, just ‘bang,’” Williams said. “And there’s smoke everywhere. My ears are ringing. And I’m looking around and I don’t know what the … just happened. And I’m looking around and I look down and I just see blood pouring all over the floor.”

She said the other witness in Popz that night immediately ran behind the bar to grab some towels. He took his belt off and used it as a makeshift tourniquet while packing her wounds. The bartender called 911.

“Craig just stood up, and stood there, staring,” Williams said. “He did not move a muscle except to stand up and stare. It felt like forever.”

After a few moments, Williams said Moreau, who had also wounded himself, told them he had a tourniquet in his pickup. He left to retrieve it. Williams said Moreau did come back with a tourniquet. She believes he placed the gun in his pickup when he retrieved the tourniquet.

John Harrington, who runs the Corruption Watch Texas Facebook page, filed a public information request for police body cam video, photographs, and written reports from the shooting. He posted much of that information to social media last week. Photographs from the scene show a loaded five-shot .357 Magnum revolver that police retrieved from Moreau’s pickup. It had one fired brass casing still in the cylinder. Williams said the settlement she received covered the cost of her medical treatment from the shooting, which she said was in excess of $100,000.

Williams said she was unhappy with the plea deal that the County Attorney offered to Moreau. Williams said she wanted Moreau to pay restitution, but she also wanted him to serve at least some amount of jail time.

“I was told that I really wasn’t going to get both, because if he was in jail he wouldn’t be able to pay restitution,” Williams said.”Because he wouldn’t be out making any money? I’m sorry but that’s not how that works.

“I was not OK with it,” Williams said, referring to the plea agreement.

Documents shared by Harrington the Corruption Watch Texas page indicate that La Grange Police at least initially prepared to file charges against Moreau for not only unlawful carry of a weapon in a prohibited place, but also tampering with evidence and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.

In the police body camera video shared last week, the bartender tells police that she believes Moreau placed the gun in his truck. One of the officers mentions to another officer, “He had the pistol in his pocket evidently,” referring to Moreau. Moreau responds by saying, “That’s not true.”

Watch the body camera video from that night on You-Tube at https://youtu.be/SrZE 6isIu4g?si=6wlTMuOOyP35 QDIx. Viewer discretion is advised. The video has also been posted to John Harrington’s Corruption Watch Texas page on Facebook: https:// www.facebook.com/profile. php?id=61571888697510.

“If you’re going to walk around breaking the law, how can you possibly judge other people?” Williams asked.