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A4 U.S. NEWS
Tuesday 12 april 2022
Families of 5 killed in Indiana FedEx shooting file lawsuit

By RICK CALLAHAN dianapolis facility, he con-
Associated Press fronted Securitas security
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Rela- staff and "began banging
tives of five of the eight on a door and causing a
people who were shot and disturbance," according to
killed last year at an India- the lawsuit, which also con-
napolis FedEx warehouse tends the actions should
by a former employee have been recognized as
sued the shipping giant those of a potentially dan-
and a security company on gerous person.
Monday, accusing them of The suit accuses Securitas
negligence and failing to of failing to adequately
ensure that the workplace train its staff to respond to
was safe. dangerous or potentially
The federal lawsuit, which dangerous situations, and
names as defendants the failing to realize that Hole
FedEx Corporation, three was "a potential threat."
of its operating units and After he was denied en-
Securitas Security Services try to the building, the suit
USA, alleges that gunman states, Hole returned to his
Brandon Scott Hole, 19, car and opened fire min-
had "exhibited emotional utes later in the parking lot
and mental instability on and then at the facility's
multiple instances" before Attorneys Daniel Chamberlain, left center, and Melvin Hewitt, Jr., right center, along with fam- entrance, killing the eight
the April 15, 2021, shooting. ily members Gurinder Johal, left, and Matthew Alexander announce a lawsuit in Indianapolis, victims and wounding five
Monday, April 11, 2022 on behalf of five families of the victims murdered in a mass shooting at the
The suit contends the de- Indianapolis FedEx Ground facility on April 15, 2021. Johal's mother, Amarjeet Johal, and Alexan- other people.
fendants "knew or should der's daughter, Karli Smith, were among the eight workers killed in the shooting. "Obviously there wasn't
have known of Hole's po- Associated Press enough in place," said Mel-
tentially violent and dan- vin L. Hewitt, one of the
gerous propensities, which 48; Jasvinder Kaur, 50; John pain remain ever-present should have taken addi- plaintiffs' attorneys.. "It's our
were reasonably likely to Weisert, 74; and Karli Smith, for him and his relatives tional security measures to position that it was an en-
result in injuries to himself 19. nearly a year after her protect the Indianapolis fa- tirely preventable."
and others." The families of the three death. cility's staff in light of previ- FedEx said in a statement
The families' complaint, other people killed — Mat- "It sucks that we have to ous mass shootings at other that it was aware of the
filed in U.S. District Court in thew R Alexander, 32; Sa- go through this when this FedEx facilities, including lawsuit and was reviewing
Indianapolis, seeks unspec- maria Blackwell, 19; and whole incident was 100% an April 2014 shooting at a the allegations. The com-
ified damages. Jaswinder Singh, 68 — are preventable," he said at a FedEx center in an Atlanta pany added that it con-
The plaintiffs are relatives of not involved in the suit. news conference with two suburb where a gunman tinues "to mourn the loss of
shooting victims Amarjeet Johal's youngest son, Gary of the plaintiffs' attorneys. wounded six people. our team members in the
Johal, 66; Amarjit Sekhon, Johal, said that hurt and The suit alleges that FedEx After Hole arrived at the In- senseless tragedy."q

California utility to pay $55 million for massive wildfires

damage payments to the destroyed more than 1,300 374 buildings in wine coun-
hundreds of people whose homes and other buildings. try and caused nearly
homes were destroyed. The blaze was caused by a 100,000 people to flee
PG&E also will submit to five tree hitting electrical distri- as it burned through 120
years of oversight by an in- bution lines west of a dam square miles (311 square ki-
dependent monitor similar in the Sierra Nevada, where lometers). It was the largest
to the supervision it faced the fire began on July 13, evacuation in the county's
during five years of crimi- 2021, according to inves- history, prosecutors said, in-
nal probation after it was tigators with the California cluding the entire towns of
convicted for misconduct Department of Forestry and Healdsburg, Windsor and
that contributed to its natu- Fire Protection. Geyserville.
ral gas explosion that killed The settlement for the Dixie The utility's federal proba-
eight people in 2010. Fire was made by district tion ended in late Janu-
Pacific Gas & Electric has attorneys in Plumas, Lassen, ary, raising worries from

This Nov. 15, 2018, aerial file photo shows the remains of resi- been blamed for more Tehama, Shasta and Butte the judge who had been
dences leveled by the Camp wildfire in Paradise, Calif. than 30 wildfires since 2017 counties, who had not yet using his powers to over-
Associated Press that wiped out more than filed charges. see the utility to try to force
23,000 homes and busi- Sonoma County prosecu- management to reduce
By OLGA R. RODRIGUEZ tors announced Monday. nesses and killed more tors filed 33 criminal charg- the fire risks posed by its
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — PG&E does not admit than 100 people. It previ- es last year accusing PG&E crumbling power lines. At
Pacific Gas & Electric has wrongdoing in the two ously reached settlements of inadvertently injuring the time PG&E emerged
agreed to pay more than settlements reached with with wildfire victims of more six firefighters and endan- from the probation, U.S.
$55 million to avoid criminal prosecutors for last year's than $25.5 billion. gering public health with District Judge William Alsup
prosecution for two major Dixie Fire — one of the big- The Dixie Fire burned near- smoke and ash from the warned PG&E remained
wildfires started by aging gest wildfires in California's ly 1 million acres (3,900 2019 Kincade Fire. a "continuing menace to
Northern California power history — and the 2019 square kilometers) in Butte, Fire officials said a PG&E California" and urged state
lines belonging to the na- Kincade Fire in Sonoma Plumas, Lassen, Shasta, transmission line sparked prosecutors to try to rein in
tion's largest utility, prosecu- County. The deals expedite and Tehama counties and the fire, which destroyed the company.q