Midland-Odessa 2019 Mass Shooting Lawsuit Press Conference
It has been just over a year since a mass shooter went on a killing rampage in the Midland-Odessa area, leaving seven dead and 25 injured. Presently, surviving family members have filed a lawsuit seeking more than $1 million in damages against a Lubbock man, Braziel, and an arms manufacturer, Anderson Arms. John Sloan of Sloan Firm is handling the case and representing the victims.
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2 min read
It has been just over a year since a mass shooter went on a killing rampage in the Midland-Odessa area, leaving seven dead and 25 injured. Presently, surviving family members have filed a lawsuit seeking more than $1 million in damages against a Lubbock man, Braziel, and an arms manufacturer, Anderson Arms. John Sloan of Sloan Firm is handling the case and representing the victims.
The shooting took place a little after 3pm on August 31st, 2019, when a white male in his mid-30s driving a gold car was pulled over by state troopers on Interstate 20 for a traffic violation. Before stopping, the shooter took a rifle and shot multiple times at the troopers through the window, before speeding off and shooting at multiple motorists and passers-by.
Before police ended the shooter’s life with their own gunfire, the shooter left a path of grief for the families of his victims: Leilah Hernandez, 15; Mary Granados, 29; Joseph Griffith, 40; Rodolfo “Rudy” Arco, 57; Kameron Brown, 30; Edwin Peregrino, 25; and Raul Garcia, 35.
Surviving family members filed the lawsuit on behalf of two victims, Leilah Hernandez and Joseph Griffith.
The lawsuit claims the AR-15 rifle used by the mass shooter was obtained illegally through Braziel and manufactured by Anderson Arms, and the lawsuit aims to hold accountable the actors that manufactured, profited from, and supplied the firearm used in the shooting.
Amarillo police had apparently raised concerns about the shooter back in February of 2011. The shooter had then refused to take his mental health medication and threatened to end his life in a police shootout, according to CNN. The shooter, who had already failed a background check once prior for an attempted firearm purchase, was able to buy the AR-15-style rifle in a private sale purchased from Braziel in Lubbock, TX, according to the petition.
Surviving family members said they also hoped “by imposing accountability on the defendants for their negligence and violations of the law, that they might prevent future gun violence and future gun deaths in Texas, and beyond,” according to the petition.
