One of the last things that go through a parent’s mind when they send their child off to college is that their child might die in a tragic incident. Unfortunately for the family of a South Carolina State Univerisity student, that is exactly what happened, and the family filed a wrongful death lawsuit as a result. The lawsuit itself was filed against South Carolina State University and two university-related groups for the “2014 fatal on-campus shooting of a student football player,” Brandon Robinson. Fortunately for Brandon’s family, the lawsuit was recently settled for $437,500.
One of the last things that go through a parent’s mind when they send their child off to college is that their child might die in a tragic incident. Unfortunately for the family of a South Carolina State Univerisity student, that is exactly what happened, and the family filed a wrongful death lawsuit as a result. The lawsuit itself was filed against South Carolina State University and two university-related groups for the “2014 fatal on-campus shooting of a student football player,” Brandon Robinson. Fortunately for Brandon’s family, the lawsuit was recently settled for $437,500.
But what happened, exactly? Well, according to the lawsuit, Brandon “was shot in the neck in the early afternoon of Jan. 24, 2014, in a parking lot outside the football players’ dormitory, which is called Hugine Suites Hall.” Before being fatally shot, he was pistol-whipped by the shooter. While attending the university, he was a “junior business major and played on the football team as an outside linebacker and defensive end.” Shortly after the shooting, the incident gained “nationwide publicity because Robinson was a student-athlete and the incident highlighted issues of campus safety.”
The shooter, “sophomore business major, Justin Singleton, pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter in the case and was sentenced to 25 years in prison.” At the moment he is 23-years-old and won’t be eligible for parole until 2035, according to the South Carolina Department of Corrections.
So why did the lawsuit accuse South Carolina University and two other entities, the South Carolina State University Real Estate Foundation and the South Carolina State University Housing of bearing some responsibility in the incident? Well, according to the lawsuit, the university “knew that Singleton had a history of violent conduct, assaulting other students and anger issues, but allowed him to continue as a student.” It said the university had a “duty to provide a reasonably safe environment for learning and higher education but failed to do so,” and alleged that the university “is in a known high crime area and that S.C. State University did not provide adequate security and protection to students.”
For now, the money from the settlement agreement “will go to Robinson’s estate,” which will effectively go to his sole surviving beneficiary, his father, Darryl Brown. But how much of the settlement is each entity responsible for paying? Well, of the “$437,500 paid to the estate, the S.C. Insurance Reserve Fund is paying $375,000 for S.C. State University. The other $62,500 is being paid by the Philadelphia Indemnity Insurance Co. for the other two entities.”
In a statement regarding the matter, one of the lawyers for Robinson’s estate, David Marshall, said: “We hope this lawsuit has caused the university to review and enforce its policies and procedures for the protection and safety of its students and other visitors on campus.”
The university has yet to comment on the settlement.
Sources:
SC State University student killed in broad daylight. Here’s what it cost the school
South Carolina State University Student Murdered in Broad Daylight
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