Oct 2, 2008 6:59 pm US/Eastern
Mother Files $10M Lawsuit For Daughter's Murder
BALTIMORE (WJZ) ―
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The mother of a murdered Baltimore City woman filed a $10 million lawsuit against the company she blames for her daughter's murder.
Should a security guard company be responsible for a murder committed by one of their employees?
The mother of a murdered Baltimore City woman thinks so.
Derek Valcourt reports she filed a $10 million lawsuit alleging the company should have done more to stop a dangerous employee.
Latasha Harris, 31, was murdered in March at her apartment on Atholgate Road in Southwest Baltimore.
Police say her live-in boyfriend Jerry Bennett shot her and then turned the gun on himself.
"It shouldn't have happened," said Latasha's mother.
Harris' mother is grieving, angry and furious with a company called U.S. Protect Services, a security company that employed guards including Jerry Bennett and armed them with guns to protect some government buildings.
Her lawsuit alleges that the company should have confiscated Bennett's company-issued firearm after he violently attacked another employee at his workplace.
A day later, he killed Latasha and then himself.
"If they knew that this person had a problem, then they should have got him some help," said Latasha's mother.
"When you have someone that commits an act of assault, and they have a firearm that the authorities need to be notified that in this case the authorities were not notified and Mr. Bennett's handgun was not confiscated. You can't allow someone with a violent temper that caused you to fire them to be walking around with a handgun that you provided to them," said David Ellin, attorney.
Latasha's mom is now caring for her two grandchildren and says U.S. Protect Services should be held accountable for the pain her family is now suffering.
"Her boys, her brother, we all miss her, her two children. It's not a day that goes by we don't think about her," said Latasha's mother.
The only problem is U.S. Protect Services went bankrupt just a few weeks after Latasha's murder. The company disbanded, and their COO was jailed for a long list of white-collar crimes.
The lawyer for Latasha's family hopes they can recover money from the insurance company who was covering U.S. Protect Services at the time.
The lawsuit was filed in court Thursday. It could take a year to 18 months before the case goes to trial.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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