WASHINGTON — A federal judge has ruled that a negligence lawsuit filed by the families of seven victims, as well as two survivors, can continue against the employers of the computer technician who opened fire at the Washington Navy Yard on Sept. 16, 2013, killing 12 people.
Aaron Alexis was killed in a gunfight with police after he had fatally shot the victims at the naval facility in southeast D.C.
The National Law Journal reports U.S. District Court Judge Rosemary Collyer found the plaintiffs could continue with one claim accusing The Experts and HP Enterprise Services of negligence in supervising Alexis.
The companies have denied liability, saying they couldn’t possibly have known that Alexis would commit a mass shooting, despite what she called his “bizarre” behavior and apparent displays of paranoia.
Collyer dismissed the victims’ claim the companies should have known Alexis might be violent when they hired him.
“To conclude otherwise would contribute to the perpetuation of the false notion that mentally-ill individuals are predisposed or likely to be violent, a stereotype that would create undesirable incentives in the employment context,” Collyer wrote.
However, Collyer will allow the case to continue, because in 2013 the plaintiffs say in August 2013, an employee of The Experts expressed concern that Alexis might hurt someone.
The judge also dismissed claims against two private security companies contracted to guard the facility, since Alexis had a valid badge to enter the building that morning.
