Wrongful death lawsuit filed on behalf of man gunned down at Tampa apartment complex
Lawyers from Fulgencio Law have filed a wrongful death lawsuit in Hillsborough County on behalf of the family of 20-year-old Freddy Benson, who was shot and killed on the early morning hours of August 19, 2016 while inside the Oakhurst Apartments in Tampa, Florida. The named Defendants in the lawsuit are Ashley Glen Land Holdings, LLC, doing business as Oakhurst Square Apartments I and Oakhurst Square Apartments II, and NDC Real Estate Management, Inc. Together, they owned, operated or were responsible for the supervision, security, oversight, management and safety of the residents and general public at the Oakhurst apartment complex where the shooting took place.
“This was a tragic situation that shook the local community, adding to a long line of senseless shooting deaths that our country is becoming numb to,” said Felipe Fulgencio, one of the lawyers prosecuting the lawsuit. “It is heartbreaking that this young man, a father, was gunned down in an act that was certainly preventable. We are bringing this lawsuit because this family deserves justice, and the people whose failures led to this tragedy must be held accountable.”
Oakhurst Square was built in the early 1970s and at the time of the shooting had roughly 200 apartments, about 40 percent of which received federal Section 8 housing subsidies, according to the Tampa Bay Times. It is believed that the drive-by shooting was in retaliation to another drive-by shooting that occurred at the apartment complex just a few days earlier.
The lawsuit seeks to hold the defendants responsible for failing to put into place the common sense, yet critical, security and safety measures necessary to ensure the safety of the guests and residents at Oakhurst Apartments.
The complaint has been filed in the Circuit Court in the Thirteenth Judicial Circuit, under case number 2018-CA-003434.
