When campus injuries are mentioned, one’s mind automatically goes to dangerous premises, slip-and-fall accidents, vehicle accidents and other similar incidents. No one wants to even consider the possibility of a violent attack by a gun-wielding student. However, shootings in public places are becoming more prevalent, one of which caused deaths and injuries in an attack at the University of North Carolina in Charlotte. Injured students and the surviving family members of those who lost their lives can pursue personal injury and wrongful death claims in a civil court.
Reportedly, a 22-year-old man was taken into custody after the shooting. The former student’s motive for opening fire is still unclear. Police officers say they asked him when they took him away, and the only answer they got was that he shot some people after going into the classroom. They say he showed no remorse; instead, he seemed proud of his actions.
Further reports indicate that his only reason for stopping the random shooting was the fact that he ran out of ammunition. He killed two students, ages 21 and 19 and injured four others. They are two 20-year old students, one age 19 and a 23-year-old. The shooter was a UNC student but dropped out recently, for unknown reasons.
Students and their parents expect college campuses to be safe, and when incidents happen to cause them harm, they might have grounds to turn to the civil justice system to recover financial and emotional losses. A consultation with an experienced personal injury can answer questions about their rights, determine who to name as defendants, and present the claim to the court. In a case such as this one, the responsible parties at the university could likely be named as a defendant along with the gunman — regardless of the outcome of the criminal case.
