A lawsuit filed in early May on behalf of an 18-year-old man seeks damages from the estate of Daunte Wright.
Wright, who was shot and killed by a Brooklyn Center police officer on April 11, is alleged to have shot Caleb Livingston in the head outside a north Minneapolis gas station in 2019.
Livingston was 16 at the time.
The lawsuit was brought forth by Livingston's mother, Jennifer LeMay, who says her son suffered "serious, disabling, and permanent injuries" as a result of the shooting.
Attorney Mike Padden is representing LeMay in the lawsuit.
"We had no choice [to file the lawsuit]," Padden told WCCO Radio's Cory Hepola on Tuesday. "The statute of limitations was coming up."
Padden said that the two-year statute of limitations was May 14, prompting the lawsuit to be filed on May 4. Along with filing the lawsuit, Padden asked that the case be kept confidential, however Judge Edward Wahl ordered the documents unsealed on May 21.
"The court in its initial order suggested me and my team look at some case law in the issue of keeping the case confidential," Padden said. "We researched that law and concluded we wouldn't be successful in keeping the case confidential."
Padden told Hepola it's important to remember that their lawsuit is a suit against Daunte Wright's estate, and not his family.
"The family's claim against the City of Brooklyn Center regarding wrongful death, this lawsuit against Wright's estate cannot access any of that recovery."
LeMay is seeking $50,000 from Wright's estate.
"The medical bills for Caleb are in excess of half-a-million dollars," Padden said. "LeMay has lost all of her life savings and not to mention what's happened to her son, this is an incredible complete nightmare. We're attempting to seek justice in the best way we can."
