4 Shooting Victims At Bowlero In Romeoville File Lawsuits
ROMEOVILLE — A total of four people who suffered gunshot wounds in the Bowlero entertainment center near Weber Road and Interstate 55 two years ago this week have filed civil lawsuits at the Will County Courthouse against the Mechanicsville, Virginia-based Bowlero Corporation.
Three of the shooting victims joined together to retain Joliet’s law firm of Rathbun, Cservenyak and Kozol; a fourth gunshot victim filed a separate lawsuit against Bowlero through attorney Gregory Lapapa out of Chicago.
According to Rathbun, Cservenyak and Kozol, all three of their clients, Ryan Domeracki-Johnson, Emanuel Harper and Kyshawn Stump, are Will County residents who arrived at Bowlero on Feb. 5, 2022.
Find out what's happening in Romeovillewith free, real-time updates from Patch.
On the night in question, Bowlero had uniformed security guards who checked guests bags, “but did not conduct any pat downs or use the metal detecting wand that was sitting at the station,” the negligence lawsuit outlined.
Inside Bowlero, Domeracki-Johnson, Harper and Stump all passed through the security staff who checked the bags of customers, “but did not conduct any pat downs or use the metal detecting wand that was sitting at their station,” their lawsuit noted.
Find out what's happening in Romeovillewith free, real-time updates from Patch.
The three were “peacefully conducting themselves and lawfully upon the Bowlero” when a man opened fire at 1:16 a.m. near the center lanes on the north side of the building, shooting and injuring multiple bystanders, according to the lawsuit.
Domeracki-Johnson suffered a gunshot to his head and his right upper thigh, with that bullet exiting out of his rear right thigh. Harper was hit and punched from behind, and he was shot in the left inner thigh, with the bullet exiting his left buttock.
Stump was punched and shot in the right hip, with the bullet exiting through his lower back.
At 1:18 a.m., the Bowlero shooter exited through the front doors, where the Bowlero security guards were stationed.
Bowlero’s internal security cameras captured “the series of events at issue and with the aid of Bowlero’s manager and general manager were shown to be responding to law enforcement,” court documents show.
“Based on past fights and persons who had brought in weapons to that Bowlero location, defendants knew, or should have known, that some patrons were potentially dangerous, and those persons posed threats to the lives, health and safety of its employees and patrons, including the plaintiffs,” their negligence lawsuit declared.
The lawsuit goes on to state that, “Bowlero further failed to properly train its employees to contact the police as to the threatening or dangerous situation, thereby putting its patrons and employees in grave danger of a shooting by a gunman.”
According to the second lawsuit, filed by shooting victim Imani Abdullah, “Imani was shot in her right hip area” and Bowlero “failed to properly screen and monitor all persons who attempted to enter its premises, including the shooter, even though it had the means to do so, it had security personnel who could have used the metal detecting wand and pat downs as necessary to detect persons with concealed weapons and prevent their entry.”
Abdullah’s lawsuit indicated Bowlero “had functioning security cameras that captured the sequence of events as the shooter walked from the parking lot towards Bowlero’s entry, preparing to wreak havoc before he entered and opened fire near the middle of the building.”
At no point in time has the Romeoville Police Department made any arrests in connection with the shootings over two years ago now. Romeoville police indicated two years ago three shooting victims were taken to Good Samaritan Hospital and two more walks-ins were treated and released at the Adventist Hospital in Bolingbrook.
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.
Click Here: brisbane lions guernsey 2019