RICHMOND, Va. — The lawyers representing a survivor of the shooting that took place outside of a Richmond high school graduation has put the City of Richmond and School Board on notice that they plan to take legal action against them.
On June 6, 2023, Desmond Johnson III attended Huguenot High School's graduation with his 7-year-old son to support a family member.
However, shortly after the ceremony ended, Johnson found himself in the middle of what his lawyers described as a "wild west shootout."
“In the midst of it, I got shot in the neck, and I got grazed in my face from behind," Johnson said. "I was just waiting to take my last breath."
What we know now is Amari Pollard shot and killed graduate Shawn Jackson in Monroe Park after a fight broke out following the ceremony. During the chaos, court evidence revealed that some people in Jackson's group fired their weapons too.
Jackson's stepfather Renzo Smith was also fatally shot, and several more victims including Johnson were injured and survived. However, police and prosecutors would never confirm who shot them.
Johnson recalled being struck after he hell to the ground to shield his son's body from bullets.
“I just laid there, and all I could hear was ringing. And looking at my son, I looked up, and all I could see was ‘Daddy, get up. Daddy, get up.’ And at the time, I couldn’t move," Johnson said.
From there, Johnson was put on a stretcher and taken to VCU Medical Center.
What came next was a lengthy healing process.
"It was a total recovery because it was almost like I had a stroke. This whole right side, I couldn't move my hand, couldn't move my leg. I had to learn how to walk. I had to learn how to write all over again," Johnson said.
Last year, CBS 6 captured some of Johnson's journey to regain his strength during a therapy session, but more than a year later, he said the physical and emotional impacts of the shooting still linger.
“It really impaired my everyday life," Johnson said, including his ability to play sports with his son or even consume the media they used to enjoy. "Both of us took it real, real hard, real bad— PTSD. Really can't watch a lot of movies with shooting."
It's an impairment he and his lawyers at Cravens and Noll believe could have been avoided.
On Tuesday, Tameka Robinson and David Noll, who are legally representing Johnson and his son, announced they had begun the process of taking legal action against the City of Richmond and School Board.
“The City of Richmond is directly responsible for allowing this situation to unfold. They failed to follow policy. They acted recklessly. They were grossly negligent," Robinson said. "The actions and omissions of the City of Richmond were the very ingredients needed to create this wild west scenario."
They cited a third-party investigation report into Richmond Public Schools' handling of the circumstances leading up to the shooting which found the district allowed Jackson, a homebound student, at the graduation without any adherence to required authorizations, proper vetting, or consideration of safety concerns that were known by school employees.
“We're simply asking that the City of Richmond take responsibility for their actions," Noll said.
Noll and Robinson would not disclose the specific details of their claims or how much they're demanding.
They said they submitted a demand package in early November. A demand package is typically the step that comes before an official lawsuit which lays out the expenses and allegations supporting the claims.
The lawyers are hoping for a settlement, but they're prepared to formally file a lawsuit if an agreement is not reached.
"We are hopeful that they are going to do the right thing, but we cannot remain silent as citizens. We must demand accountability from our governments so that this reckless behavior and tragedies like this happened to Mr. Johnson and his son do not happen again," Noll said.
A spokesperson for Richmond Public Schools said neither the district nor its insurance company received a demand letter.
However, once a letter is received, the district said it does not comment on pending litigation.
Meanwhile, a federal lawsuit against the Richmond School Board filed on behalf of Shawn Jackson's mother is still pending. According to online court records, a settlement conference in that case is scheduled for next week.
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