Victims in Greenwood Park Mall Mass Shooting File Lawsuit
Several victims of the July 17, 2022 mass shooting at Greenwood Park Mall have filed a lawsuit in Marion Superior Court against Simon Property Group and Allied Universal Event Services. Among the allegations in the complaint, Simon and Allied, who was contracted to provide security services for the mall, are each accused of gross negligence for “failing to take reasonable steps” to prevent the shooting from occurring in the first place.
The Plaintiff victims include two sisters who were in the food court together, and their mother who was nearby in the mall when assailant Jonathan Sapirman opened fire. Kaya Stewart was shot multiple times, incapacitated and sustained life-threatening injuries. Her sister, a minor referred to as O.S., was by Kaya’s side when the Assailant turned his weapon on her, firing at O.S. as she turned and ran. Thankfully, the shots missed O.S. but hit packages she was carrying.
Plaintiff Eumeka “Meka” Stewart had been walking to meet her daughters Kaya and O.S. when the shooting began. Meka was forced to run in the opposite direction of the food court as a large crowd rushed to escape.
Husband and father, Samuel Stewart III, is also a Plaintiff in the lawsuit as the legal guardian of O.S.
Given the prevalence of mass shootings in numerous malls across America, it was foreseeable to defendants Simon and Allied that something catastrophic could likely occur. The complaint alleges that if the dozens of video feeds throughout the parking lot and mall were adequately staffed and/or all the cameras working properly, and/or if the food court had been appropriately monitored by security personnel, this incident should have been preventable.
Instead, the Assailant went unnoticed on mall property as he walked through the parking lot of the mall, into the mall, and into a restroom near the food court while carrying a long, heavy black backpack. There, he spent over an hour; he donned an ammunition vest and assembled weapons, including a Sig Sauer model 400M rifle, a Smith and Wesson M&P15 rifle, and a Glock model 33 handgun, six fully loaded 5.56 magazines and two Glock 33 magazines.
No Simon employee or Allied security personnel attended to the men’s restroom for more than an hour, contrary to their own protocols. Additionally, no Allied security personnel were present in the mall’s food court at the time of the shooting.
The Plaintiffs are represented by attorneys Greg Laker and Andrea Simmons from the law firm of Cohen & Malad, LLP, Indianapolis.
View the stamped complaint online here; download a printable copy of the press release here. To request an interview or reach out to Cohen & Malad regarding this case, please contact Barbara Bates.
