David Charlip of Charlip Law Group in North Miami. Courtesy photo.

David Charlip of Charlip Law Group in North Miami Beach teamed with Ortavia Simon of Simon Law Group in Maitland to secure a $5 million jury verdict for a man who was shot seven times after leaving a nightclub, in a parking lot he alleged security staff hadn't properly guarded.

Dezje Williams went to The Barn in Sanford on Aug. 15, 2016, to watch a local rapper and friend perform at a weekly hip-hop night. But the evening took a turn when Williams left the club and headed to his car, parked in a dimly lit overflow parking lot across the road.

Williams was looking for cousins he'd arrived with, according to Charlip, who said his client walked back to the club when he couldn't find them by the car.

"He encountered these two guys coming the other direction and told them to 'be safe.' They passed him and then he didn't see his cousins at the front of the club, so he went back to the car," Charlip said. "As he approached his car, he saw the guy and his companion basically standing behind the doors of their vehicle, which were open, holding guns and shooting at him."

Williams was hit by seven bullets but managed to run back towards the club before collapsing. He underwent several surgeries, suffered broken ribs and a hemothorax, which is a build up of blood between the chest wall and the lungs.

Williams later identified his shooter, Traveus Lemon, in a police lineup. Lemon was sentenced to 10 years in prison.

Williams sued in 2017, claiming that no security guards had been deployed to the overflow parking lot on the night of his attack, even though it had poor lighting and few surveillance cameras. Sanford police officers had handled security at the club until soon before the incident, when the club hired security company Armor Bearer Security & Protection LLC, which the plaintiff alleged was inexperienced.

"Despite the fact they felt it was going to be a full house that evening, the bar management reduced the number of security guards from four to two," Charlip said.

But it didn't help the plaintiff's case that the venue was right around the corner from the Sanford Police Station.

"It's difficult to make a negligent security argument when the police station is literally … you could see it from the nightclub," Charlip said. "We pointed out that the job of security was not the Sanford police's responsibility. It was certainly something the bar owners had paid the Sanford police to do in the past, but they had made a decision not to pay them."

Scott A. Tacktill of The Unger Law Group in Orlando represents The Barn's former operator, now-defunct company Silver Saddle Entertainment Inc., which jurors found 75% liable, and its current landlord JTV Investments LLC, which jurors found was not to blame.

"Unfortunately, it was bad timing, because they normally had four armed security people in the parking area but that particular day they had not expected a big crowd and switched it to two," Tacktill said. "I think that's what the jury locked onto."

Isadore O. Hyde Jr. of the Law Office of Isadore Hyde in Lake Mary represents Armor Bearer, which jurors found 25% liable. She did not respond to a request for comment by deadline.

Random shooting or retaliation?

At trial, both parties disputed events leading up to the shooting. Charlip claimed Williams was familiar with the men but had never spoken to them before.

"We think they were trying to steal something from him because he was the victim of an attempted robbery the week before, and he had some nice jewelry, as some of these rappers tend to do," Charlip said. "That's the only motive that we believe was reasonable."

But defense attorney Tacktill cast doubt on that version of events, pointing to testimony from Lemon, who claimed Williams pulled a gun first. The facts remain in dispute, but Lemon alleged the shooting was in retaliation to the earlier attempted robbery, when his friend Darrius Grooms was allegedly shot.

"This wasn't a random shooting," Tacktill said. "There is a history here."

Williams has denied any wrongdoing, and police found no evidence he had a gun or was involved in starting the incident.

Charlip said he worried about potential prejudice from North Florida jurors against his client, a young, black male with a shaky employment history and tattoos from head to foot. So Charlip made sure Williams had a chance to explain how his injuries have affected him.

"A lot of the tattoos were musically-oriented and an expression of his artistic thoughts and demeanor," Chalrip said. "The fact that he had scars was upsetting to him because it ruined the tattoos and it affected his self image."

Charlip said the attack has shattered his client's aspirations to become a rapper, as he's now self-conscious of scarring on his face and body, and afraid to go to nightclubs and other crowded places.

Jurors awarded Williams $1 million for past and future medical expenses, $1 million in past and future wages and $3 million for pain and suffering.

"I think the jury saw him as being courageous, and someone who should be rewarded for his willingness to work within the system to see that bad guys don't walk the streets," Charlip said.

Tacktill has moved for a directed verdict, arguing that jurors gave $1 million more than the plaintiff had sought for pain and suffering.

"They were giving away money quite a bit," Tacktill said. "It appears that the jury acted more out of sympathy than anything else. I'm not saying there's no value here whatsoever because he was shot, there were wounds and he has facial scarring. But the amount here was clearly excessive."

Tacktill also claims there was no evidence of lost wages, earning capacity or future medical expenses. If he prevails, Williams' $2 million in economic damages could fall as low as $10,000—the amount Williams paid for his medical care.

Seminole Circuit Judge Michael Rudisill has yet to rule on the verdict and will hear the motions Feb. 6.

The plaintiff also faces insurance issues, as Silver Saddle had only obtained a $100,000 policy, instead of the $2 million required by its lease. Likewise, Armor Bearer's insurance excluded assault claims, which Charlip argues "makes the whole policy irrelevant," and plans to bring bad faith claims.

Read the verdict:

Case: Dezje Williams v. JTV Investment LLC

Case no.: 2017CA002297

Description: Negligent security

Filing date: Oct. 11, 2017

Verdict date: Nov. 15, 2019

Judge: Seminole Circuit Judge Michael Rudisill

Plaintiffs attorneys: David Charlip, Charlip Law Group, North Miami Beach; Ortavia Simon, Simon Law Group, Maitland

Defense attorneys: Scott A. Tacktill, The Unger Law Group, Orlando; Isadore O. Hyde Jr., Law Office of Isadore Hyde, Lake Mary

Verdict amount: $5 million

 

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