Jury says Seattle failed to protect public safety inside CHOP leading to fatal teen shooting in 2020, ordered to pay millions

Seattle, Washington – A jury has determined that the city of Seattle was responsible for the death of a 16-year-old boy who was shot and killed in the Capitol Hill Occupied Protest zone in 2020. The jury gave the child’s family almost $30 million in damages after deciding that the city was negligent in its actions.

The case is about the death of Antonio Mays Jr., who was shot and killed in late June 2020 while inside the CHOP zone, which was set up during Black Lives Matter rallies. Jurors decided that the city didn’t keep the public safe even though they had known for weeks that the area posed serious risks.

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Evidence provided at trial showed that city administrators knew the protest area was getting more dangerous but did not do anything to restore police presence or emergency access. The lawsuit said that these conditions were directly responsible for what happened that led to Mays’ death.

Citing court documents, KOMO NEWS reported that Mays and friend Robert West were driving a Jeep near Cal Anderson Park when armed individuals who had taken on security roles in the demonstration zone shot them. The shooting marked the fourth incident of gun violence in the area that month.

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After the gunfire, volunteer medics took the teens out of the car and tried to get to the first responders. They drove to a meeting place at the corner of 14th Avenue and East Union Street before going on to Harborview Medical Center. Mays died later from his injuries.

Former Seattle Police Chief Carmen Best said at the time that bystanders had moved in and out of the Jeep before detectives were able to secure the scene, complicating the investigation. The trial additionally addressed the murder of 19-year-old Horace Lorenzo Anderson, who was shot in the CHOP zone a week before Mays. In the case, Marcel Long was found guilty in 2023 and given a prison sentence of more than ten years.

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The lawsuit also said that city officials’ public statements in favor of the CHOP zone made Mays think it was safe to go there.

Mays’ father spoke about how hard-working, respectful, and full of potential his son was at a press conference after the verdict. He argued that as a single dad, he taught his son to be proud of who he was and to know what Black Americans go through.

Lead trial attorney Evan M. Oshan said that the city never indicated it was regretful or took responsibility. He also noted that there was no settlement offer before the trial. He argued the verdict sent a message that the teen’s life mattered.

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In a brief statement, the Seattle City Attorney’s Office called the death a tragedy and said the city would review its legal options moving forward.