JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The families of the three victims who died in a racist mass shooting at a Dollar General in Jacksonville announced a wrongful death lawsuit at a press conference Tuesday.
52-year-old Angela Carr, 19-year-old A.J. Laguerre, Jr. and 29-year-old Jerrald Gallion were shot and killed by 21-year-old Ryan Palmeter, who left behind a hate-filled manifesto, at the store in August.
Attorneys representing the families, including Ben Crump, Michael Haggard and Adam Finkel, joined them for a press conference at the DoubleTree Hilton Hotel.
They're suing Dollar General for failing to provide adequate security in a "high crime area" and Palmeter's parents.
Crump said having security personnel on the premises would have prevented the shooting. He said the shooter went to a Family Dollar and Edward Waters University, where he was turned away by security guards, before going to the Dollar General on Kings Road.
AJ Laguerre, Jr. worked at the store, and his older brother Quantavious Laguerre said he's tired of hearing that his brother is in a better place. He wants his brother to be alive instead.
"I'm tired of hearing 'He's watching over you,'" Quantavious Laguerre said. "No, I want him here. People say, 'Cherish the memories you have with him.' No, I want to make more. That's my baby brother. He's supposed to bury me, not me bury him."
Quantavious Laguerre said he hopes the company will change security protocols and save lives.
Angela Carr was outside the store dropping off an Uber passenger when she got shot. Her daughter Armisha Payne said her death has shattered the family, including 13 grandchildren. Some aren't old enough to understand why she's not coming back, she said.
"This has hit hard for home because she now has kids and grand kids that don't know where nana is," Payne said. "They want their nana home. We just want justice for this."
Jerrald Gallion was inside the store shopping when the shooter opened fire. His mother Carrol Gibbs recalled that August day.
"His girlfriend was screaming and hollering," Gibbs said. "She told me Jerrald was shot. I started screaming and hollering. His sister, his siblings started screaming and hollering."
Attorney Michael Haggard said the Dollar General shooting appears to be a copycat of the shooting at a Tops Friendly Market in Buffalo.
The shooter lived with his parents Maryann and Stephen Palmeter, who are accused of knowing about his struggle with alcoholism and mental health issues and not taking action to protect the general public from their son.
"This case is absolutely about justice because we may find out they didn't know all that much, but America needs to know," Haggard said. "These families need to know: what did those parents know about him and what could have been done?”
Evidence released Monday showed photos of the shooter's room, littered with liquor bottles and prescription medication bottles and books, including "The Christian and His Machine Gun."
Crump and Haggard said it's unclear how much the shooter's parents knew, but the goal of the lawsuit is to find out and get justice.