Gunshots at Atlanta RaceTrac Gas Station and Nearby Parking Lot Leave Multiple Victims with Serious Injuries

Does the owner of the RaceTrac gas station near Georgia State campus face legal liability after gun violence left bystanders seriously injured? 

On Monday night, Atlanta Police offers responded to a shooting at 120 Piedmont Avenue, the location of a RaceTrac gas station near the Georgia State University campus. They located a man who had been shot in the back. He was transferred to a hospital with serious injury, but alert and conscious.

Police believe two groups were shooting at each other and the victim was a bystander. They don’t know what started the violent gun attack.

A short time later, Atlanta Police were called to a parking lot just down the street at Edgewood Avenue where another gun shooting left a victim wounded.

According to investigators, neither victim is believed to be a Georgia State University student.

Georgia Negligent Security Law

In Georgia, property and business owners, including establishments like the RaceTrac gas station, must make sure their property is safe if there have been crimes in the area. This might include asking customers for ID, keeping criminals away, using security cameras that are easy to see, having security guards on site, and making sure the area is well lit. Studies have shown that these measures can reduce violent crime in and around businesses.

A History of Negligence at the Georgia State RaceTrac

In December 2022 a Georgia State student was shot and killed at the same Racetrac location. In 2021, another gun shooting left one man dead and another injured there.

Only Crime Victims or Their Family Can Demand Justice

In Georgia, property and business owners have to make sure their establishment is safe from crimes that are foreseeable. If they don't do anything about criminal activity, it can keep happening over and over again.

Even though the police can put criminals in jail and try to make things right, they can't make property owners take steps to prevent crime or pay money to the families of victims who were hurt.

Only those who have survived a violent crime or the victim's family can sue property owners and related businesses in court. A civil judgment can help with costs like medical bills and lost earnings and provide a starting point for healing, although it cannot fully make up for the suffering caused by violent crime.

It is worth noting that owners and management are unlikely to take action to prevent violent crimes on their property until after they have faced significant damages in court.

Together we can Make Atlanta Safe, one community at a time.