What was the value of the life of JauMarcus McFarland? That's what the teenager's mother Jessica Moore wants a jury to decide.
The 18 year old football player from Missouri had recently moved to Atlanta to attend Champion Prep Academy when he died on August 31, 202l. McFarland and some teammates were on an elevator when it became stuck in the 444 Highlands apartment building that the group lived in. He was crushed to death.
After conducting their own independent investigation, McFarland's family has filed several wrongful-death lawsuits. Attorney Shean Williams tells Audacy Atlanta's Maria Boynton that "JauMarcus' death was a direct relation of a multitude of failures."
Williams says if the failures had been corrected "JauMarcus would still be here." The lawsuit states that the annual elevator safety inspection was more than a year overdue.
Named in the lawsuits are Nazar Holdings LLC; Nazar properies LLC; Nazar Holdings 11, LLC; Sohanna Properties LLC; Alpha Elevator Services, LLC; Velocity Elevator, LLC; Georgia Commercial and Residential Elevators, LLC; and Georgia Prep Sports Academy, Inc. also known as Champion Prep Academy.
The school prepares student-athletes for college. Propery manager Sohanna was fined $5,000 by the State of Georgia for failing to notify officials of McFarland's death.
The building manager had been quoted as saying the weight limit of 3,000 pounds was exceeded by nearly 1,000 pounds
