PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — The mother of the student killed outside Roxborough High School nearly two years ago is suing the School District of Philadelphia for failing to protect her son from gun violence.
Meredith Elizalde filed a federal civil rights suit Tuesday, claiming the district didn’t adequately protect her 14-year-old son Nicolas when he was gunned down after a football scrimmage at the school on Sept. 27, 2022. Police say a group of assailants jumped out of an SUV and began firing on the football players as they left the scrimmage. Five suspects are awaiting trial in the case.
Elizalde’s attorney, Tom Kline of Kline & Specter, PC, said in a statement that there was no security and there were no district personnel or law enforcement officers in the area when the shooting happened. That, he said, represents a civil rights violation.
The suit says there were 75 assaults and weapons violations near Roxborough High in the five years preceding the shooting, but the district failed to take adequate safety precautions.
“Well before this tragedy, the School District of Philadelphia knew the hours after school are the most dangerous time of day for Philadelphia students, and that sports events like the one where Nicolas Elizalde was shot and killed are a magnet for the gun violence that is plaguing our city,” said Kline.
A district spokeswoman said there would be no comment on pending litigation. Elizalde has filed a similar suit in Common Pleas Court against the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association.
“By ignoring red flag after red flag about the vulnerability of Pennsylvania student-athletes to gun violence, the PIAA has placed student athletes at risk, and that negligence resulted in the tragic death of Nicolas Elizalde,” Kline said.
KYW Newsradio contacted the PIAA for a comment, but hasn’t yet heard back.