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SALT LAKE CITY — A woman whose 19-year-old son was shot and killed after a concert in South Salt Lake has filed a wrongful death complaint.
Patricia Lopez is accusing SJS Limited Partnership of negligence in the death of her son, Stephen Lopez, because the business owned the venue where the concert was held.
"Defendant was negligent by not providing supervision and adequate security to insure the safety of the patrons at the defendant's premises for the concert…" the complaint, filed in 3rd District Court, states.
Stephen Lopez was attending a concert for rap artist "Big Tone" at the Arbat Reception Hall near 375 E. 3300 South with his sister on Oct. 1, according to the complaint. As the concert ended, a fight broke out and gunshots were "fired randomly over and into the crowd."
"Without any fault of his own for having started the dispute, Stephen received a bullet to the chest," the complaint states, noting that others were injured in the shooting, but none as severely as Stephen Lopez.
"In the confusion to obtain medical help for the injured, Stephen was the last person to be taken by ambulance to the hospital," according to the lawsuit.
Patricia Lopez said she arrived at the hospital only to watch her son die.
In the lawsuit, she alleges that it was negligence on the part of SJS Limited Partnership that led to the wrongful death of her son and asked that she be awarded for damages in an amount to be determined at trial to compensate for her loss.
Police reported that as many as six others were injured, some critically, in the incident. It is believed the altercation was gang-related.
Email:emorgan@ksl.com
