Judge dismisses mother’s wrongful death lawsuit against Richmond Schools for Huguenot High mass shooting
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RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) -- A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed by the mother and widow of the two men killed in a 2023 mass shooting that took place after a graduation ceremony. The judge said that, while named school officials may have been "irresponsible and ineffective," they did not "create the danger" that caused these deaths.
On June 6, 2023, immediately following Huguenot High School's graduation ceremony at the Altria Theater, shots were fired in the nearby Monroe Park. Several people were injured in the resulting chaos.
Both 18-year-old graduate Shawn Jackson and his stepfather, 36-year-old Lorenzo Smith, were shot and killed.
Report on tragic shooting unearths troubling findings
In the wake of this tragedy, the public turned to Richmond Public Schools for answers on how something like this could have happened. A third-party report released in January 2024 revealed that the school district made several mistakes both prior to and during that ceremony.
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While some of those missteps included staffing and security at the ceremony, others were specific to Jackson.
One major finding was that Jackson should not have been allowed to be at the ceremony at all due to threats to his safety that were reportedly well-known by school officials, including his guidance counselor and two now-former members of Huguenot High's administrative team.
Lawsuit claims RPS was responsible for both deaths
In July 2024, Tameeka Jackson-Smith -- Jackson's mother and Smith's wife -- filed wrongful death lawsuits against the Richmond City School Board, as well as superintendent Jason Kamras.
The officials mentioned above were also named: Huguenot High guidance counselor Monique Harris, former Huguenot High principal Robert Gilstrap and former Huguenot High assistant principal Kevin Olds.
These lawsuits were later merged into one joint suit, with Jackson-Smith's amended complaint asking for more than $16 million in compensation.
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In a previous interview with 8News, Jackson-Smith's lawyers said Richmond Public Schools was responsible for both Jackson and Smith's deaths because its staff failed to ensure Jackson's safety.
“Once they squeezed Shawn Jackson into that graduation knowing that he had previous threats against his life, they had a duty to protect him,” lawyer Brian Telfair said during that interview.
Federal judge: RPS did not have constitutional duty to protect Jackson
On Friday, July 18, federal judge Roderick Young ordered that the lawsuit be dismissed. Specifically, he dismissed two of the charges within it with prejudice -- meaning similar charges cannot be filed in the future -- and the third without prejudice.
8News legal expert Russ Stone previously said that the viability of Jackson-Smith's case would largely hinge on whether or not a federal judge believed that the school district indeed had a constitutional, legal duty to protect Jackson.
In his 28-page opinion on the matter, Young stated his belief that, while Jackson's death was "tragic, as is the loss that [Jackson-Smith] suffered," the school division did not violate Jackson's constitutional rights.
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Such a constitutional violation would require the school district to have a custodial relationship with Jackson and, per the court, "Shawn was in no way in a special [custodial] relationship with any party."
"Although the school officials here may have been irresponsible and ineffective in not heeding the warnings that [Jackson] was helpless at the hands of bullies, they have not committed a constitutional violation," Young wrote.
Young said that, in essence, school officials "did not 'create' the danger," but "simply failed to provide adequate protection from it." They did not "cause, create or increase" the chance of his death, which occurred "at the hands of a non-HHS student, off HHS property and outside the control of Harris or HHS."
"While Shawn’s death was undoubtedly tragic, [Jackson-Smith's] allegations do not give rise to a reasonable inference that the named actors created the danger Shawn faced and to which he ultimately fell victim," Young wrote.
Young also stated that Jackson's own agency in attending the ceremony was a factor in his decision. He said that, after reviewing the facts, he believed Jackson attended the graduation ceremony of his own free will with no noted promises from school officials that his safety would be guaranteed.
School Board: 'We sincerely hope they find comfort and peace'
The Richmond City School Board issues the following statement on Tuesday, July 22 in response to Young's decision:
"The Richmond City School Board would like to announce that Civil Action No. 3:24CV28 (RCY), a lawsuit filed against the School Board in relation to the 2023 Monroe Park shooting, has been dismissed with prejudice, meaning that it cannot be re-filed against the School Board. In addition, the Court dismissed all claims against Superintendent Kamras and several Huguenot High School staff members. We are grateful for the Court’s decision in relation to all the defendents.
We want to again express our profound sympathy to the family members who experienced the loss of two loved ones that day. Our thoughts and prayers continue to be with them and all who were impacted by this terrible tragedy. We sincerely hope they find comfort and peace in the days to come." Richmond City School Board
Amari Pollard has since pleaded guilty in Jackson's murder, though he is currently trying to appeal his conviction. No charges have been filed in connection with Smith's death as of the time of reporting.
You can read all of 8News' coverage of the Huguenot High School graduation shooting here.
This is a developing story, stay with 8News for updates.
