Family Of Jacksonville Victims Sue Dollar General Over Racist Mass Shooting

Family members of the Jacksonville Dollar General shooting victims are suing the owner, operator, and security contractor of the Florida store.

Family members of the Jacksonville, Florida, Dollar General shooting victims are suing the store’s owner, operator, and security contractor, claiming negligent security helped a racist gunman kill their loved ones.

According to NBC News, the lawsuit was filed on Dec. 4 in a Florida state court. The lawsuit names the parents and estate of Ryan Palmeter, the gunman who killed Angela Carr, Jerrald Gallon, and A.J. Laguerre, as defendants. According to the lawsuit, “While Palmeter was deterred from harming the public at his two preceding stops, at this Dollar General, there was nothing in place to again deter Palmeter from attacking and killing innocent persons.”

“Dollar General, blood is on your hands, too,” said Benjamin Crump, one of the attorneys representing the victims’ family, at a Dec. 5 press conference.

Added Q’uantavius Laguerre, the older brother of A.J. Laguerre, “If Dollar General just simply had somebody there to be security just as Family Dollar did, just as Edward Waters did, I wouldn’t be up here speaking about AJ.”

According to investigators, Palmeter made it clear in his writings that he carried an intense hatred for Black people. Additionally, Palmeter texted his father and told him to check his computer, where he found a suicide note Palmeter among the writings. His parents notified the authorities, but it was too late, as Palmeter had already begun his attack.

Palmeter killed himself at the scene. The lawsuit also blames Palmeter’s parents for their negligence, “including but not limited to informing the authorities about the threat posed by Ryan Palmeter and by allowing him and/or assisting him to retain his firearms, despite the evident danger posed.”

According to NBC News, Palmeter was involved in a 2016 domestic violence incident that did not lead to an arrest and was involuntarily committed for a 72-hour mental health examination in 2017.