A law firm announced on Sunday it will file a lawsuit against the City of New Orleans and New Orleans Police Department (NOPD) on Wednesday over alleged “gross negligence” that purportedly allowed terrorist Shamsud Din Jabbar to drive a vehicle through a crowd of revelers early on New Year’s Day, killing 14 and injuring dozens.
The New Orleans-based Maples and Connick law firm stated in a press release that it will file its lawsuit against the city and police department on Wednesday morning, arguing, “their failure to implement basic safety precautions for citizens and visitors,” amounted to “negligence” that ultimately “paved the way for the tragic events that unfolded in the early morning hours of January 1, 2025.”
According to the attorneys, their lawsuit will seek to prove that Jabbar’s attack was “both foreseeable and preventable,” with the terrorist only able to commit the attack because of “NOPD’s gross negligence.”
While the law firm’s press release does not offer specific details of the allegations within their forthcoming lawsuit, the press release follows criticism levied at NOPD Chief Anne Kirkpatrick and the city over retractable bollards and other barriers that were not in place on January 1.
Initially, it was reported the city purchased retractable bollards in 2017, but the New Orleans Department of Public Works announced last November they would be replaced over a months-long project that was originally scheduled to conclude in February 2025.
After video that appeared to show the white truck driven by Jabbar was able to evade police vehicles by driving on a sidewalk received millions of views on social media, Kirkpatrick said NOPD deployed barriers specifically designed to prevent vehicles from driving on sidewalks as part of a “hardening” of the area after the attack.
Pressed for information by reporters, Kirkpatrick acknowledged that NOPD had access to the barriers prior to the terrorist attack, but said she was unaware the department owned them until after the attack.
“This is not a matter of pointing blame anywhere,” said Kirkpatrick in a Thursday press conference. “A terrorist is hellbent on destruction. This man was going to do his best, and if it hadn’t been on Bourbon, he was going to go somewhere else. So we have this, we’re going to implement it, and end of story.”
Kirkpatrick’s remarks were echoed by the Police Association of New Orleans (PANO) in a statement provided to 4 WWL.
“While many questions have been raised regarding various aspects of this incident, PANO must caution against the knee-jerk reactions of some who are immediately calling for the resignation or termination of Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick,” said a spokesman for the police association, adding, “fairness dictates that all the details and information be processed and confirmed before conclusions are drawn and responsibilities are assigned.”
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Tom Pappert is the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star, and also reports for The Pennsylvania Daily Star and The Arizona Sun Times. Follow Tom on X/Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
