The parents of La’Tavion Johnson, the 18-year-old student killed during homecoming festivities at Tuskegee University, have filed a lawsuit against the university. They have filed a wrongful death suit against the university and security officials.
In a lawsuit filed in Macon County earlier this week named Tuskegee University, former university Police Chief Terrance Calloway; International Protections Investigation Agency and its owner Reginald Brown; Jones Lang LaSalle Americas, the university’s facilities management company; suspected shooter Jaquez Myrick; and several others as defendants.
Johnson was killed the weekend of November 10 after suspected shooter Jaquez Myricks opened fire in a crowded area on campus. According to his family, he died saving someone else’s life. In an interview, his father, Larry Johnson, labeled him ‘a hero in his own way.’
16 others were injured during the shooting, with Johnson being the only fatality. Myricks was arrested by law enforcement following the incident. He was found with a fully equipped handgun with a machine gun conversion. Myricks is currently being held at the Montgomery County Jail. The family has hired Birmingham attorney Tedd Mann of Mann & Potter to represent them.
“It’s an unfortunate tragedy that could have been avoided with appropriate policing and security measures on the campus.”
“They had a somewhat similar shooting on the campus just a year ago, and we feel like the defendants involved, particularly those at the university and the contractors that were working with the university, really failed to adequately secure the premises of the university,” said Mann.
Another man, Jeremiah Williams, has been charged federally on illegal machine gun charges, but neither of the suspects involved have been charged with Johnson’s murder or injuring others. According to Johnson’s lawsuit, the university knew that events such as homecoming bring in large crowds, but due to a lack of security, Myricks was able to come on Tuskegee’s campus and start shooting.
Here are some of the claims from the Johnson’s lawsuit:
Myrick, the lawsuit states, went onto campus with a gun that had a Glock switch, or a machine gun conversion device, which allowed him to “shoot and spray projectiles at students, guests, and visitors on the campus of the university homecoming festivities, as well as gatherings on the campus.”
“He was allowed to enter the campus with this deadly firearm and scores of ammunition without so much as having to show an ID or to be required to have his person and/or his vehicle scanned inspected or prohibited from entry onto the campus while possessing a firearm and ammunition,” the complaint states.
The defendants, attorneys said, failed to monitor and supervise the campus in a way to prevent the possession and use of guns, provide adequate security and security forces, and warn students and visitors of potential criminal acts.
The day after the shooting, the university replaced its chief of security and established a new security policy. Dr. Mark A. Brown, the president of the university, said the university is “no longer an open campus.” Everyone will need to present a university ID to enter the campus. When on campus, both students and faculty are required to always wear identification. According to the university, people without one can get one in the Public Safety facility across from the main gate.
An undisclosed amount of damages is being sought in the lawsuit.
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