$26 Million Settlement in Georgia Wrongful Death Shooting Case

A young mother and her unborn child were killed by stray bullets at her Georgia apartment complex after its owners and managers failed to address known, violent activity.

ATLANTA (April 11, 2023) – Beasley Allen and co-counsel secured a $26 million settlement in a deadly Georgia apartment complex shooting case that took the lives of a young mother and her unborn child. The victims were killed by stray bullets from a shooting involving other parties.

Beasley Allen Atlanta lawyers Parker Miller and Houston Kessler, along with Greg Stokes and Neil Kopitsky of Stokes & Kopitsky, and Natanya Brooks, Meredith Watts, and Morgyn Graber of Brooks Injury Law represented the victims’ family members.

“This was a hard-fought, tragic case that should have never happened,” said Beasley Allen attorney Parker Miller. “The defendant apartment complex had a history of violent crime and was warned consistently about the dangers. We absolutely were not settling this case unless the defendants did the right thing, which they ultimately did, but not before precious lives were lost and years of litigation ensued.”

The attorneys who represented the family members confirmed that the complex had violated many of its own policies and procedures regarding the management of the property on numerous occasions before the shooting event at issue. The complex also received many calls reporting multiple gunshot events.

One witness compared the complex to a war environment, explaining that he and his family had to duck under the kitchen table during dinner when gunshots would ring out. A former, retired police officer with experience responding to calls at the complex described the location as one of the worst in the area.

These and other witnesses’ testimony show that the complex’s owners and management were aware of its history of violence and should have followed its policies, or even hired a security guard, a courtesy officer, or installed a fence, but they did not take any measures to address the known violence.

“Unfortunately, this is what happens when little to no action is taken to address known violent activity,” said Natanya Brooks of Brooks Injury Law. “The defendants had every opportunity to do something to make a difference in this community, but they chose another path. The victim’s family was so brave throughout this entire process, given they had to bear this enormous loss while also fighting for justice at the same time. We are all so proud of them.”

Violence at apartment complexes throughout Georgia have gained attention because owners’ inaction allows the violence to continue. Many of the complexes are privately owned and operated but receive significant government funding. Ownership might be tempted to collect the funds and ignore the conditions of the complex, but that would be a mistake.