$10M against apartment owners after a resident was shot walking home
Jurors valued the loss at $20 million and split fault evenly between the owners and shooters who were never identified.
Amount awarded by the jury $10,000,000 State Court of Clayton County · September 9, 2016 · Clayton County, Georgia
A Clayton County, Georgia, jury ordered the owners and manager of a metro Atlanta apartment complex to pay $10 million to the family of a resident who was shot and killed on the property.
The resident, a carpenter and father of three, was shot during an apparent robbery in 2015 while walking home from a store. The family argued that security at the complex was lax despite high crime in the area.
The jury awarded $18 million for the full value of his life and $2 million for the pain he suffered before he died. It apportioned fault 50 percent to the property owners and manager and 50 percent to the unknown attackers, leaving the owners responsible for $10 million.
The owners’ attorney said he would ask for a new trial and told reporters the case should have been worth $2 million. We have not found a report of how post-trial motions were decided.
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Not legal advice. Southeast Verdicts reports public court outcomes and news coverage. Parties are anonymized. Amounts are as reported at the time of the verdict or settlement and may have been reduced, appealed or not collected.
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Published by Dan Wentz
Commercial insurance producer in Birmingham, Alabama, specializing in coverage for commercial real estate owners.