Two Doral police officers are suing the owners of a bar and a private security company after a deadly shooting, accusing them of negligence and alleging that the "preventable" incident left them both with severe injuries.
Officers Andre Romo and Ricardo Acevedo were on an "off-duty detail," the lawsuit states, when they responded to a shooting on April 6 at Martini Bar at CityPlace on Northwest 83rd Avenue. Calls started coming in to 911 around 3:30 a.m.
According to Miami-Dade police, 37-year-old Jamal Wayne Wood had started shooting indiscriminately when a fight broke out inside the establishment, killing 23-year-old George Alejandro Castellanos, a private security guard who had intervened.
The officers became involved in a shootout with Wood, who was eventually killed, police said.
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The lawsuit stated the officers applied a tourniquet to the nightclub owner's gunshot wound, saving his life.
Romo and Acevedo are now suing Martini Bar, Park Square 5, Madison Marquette Real Estate Services and SFM Security Services for at least $50,000 in damages.
They allege that Castellanos “was recently hired and had not undergone proper safety training, which could have prevented the incident.”
"The popular night club’s owners had a responsibility to protect all individuals by properly searching patrons for weapons prior to entering the facility," the complaint states.
Acevedo suffered what the lawsuit alleges are severely debilitating and permanent injuries after he was shot in the leg, centimeters from his femoral artery.
Romo has not been able to recover from incapacitating post-traumatic stress that has impeded his ability to work as an officer, the suit continues.
“I almost didn’t make it home to my wife and kids over a completely preventable incident and simple safety measures,” Romo said.
Martini Bar has not responded to a request for comment.
According to the lawsuit, Martini Bar Doral's protocol is to "search patrons at the door for weapons and firearms. Martini Bar Doral’s primary security guard was not present at the time of the incident. Instead, a new security guard, who lacked the proper training and experience, was on duty in the primary security guard’s absence."
An employee of Martini Bar who spoke to NBC6 anonymously after the shooting shared a similar account.
"Our main pat-down guy that we've had for the past three or four years, he wasn't there Friday night for the first time," the employee said at the time. "It was a brand new guy that was there."
The plaintiffs allege that the bar "negligently failed to have adequate procedures governing the search and inspection of patrons prior to entry into Martini Bar Doral; or in the alternative... implemented said procedures in a careless and negligent manner."
Seven other people were hurt in the gunfire. Some of those victims also filed lawsuits against the establishment and CityPlace.
In May, Doral city leaders took the first step toward enhancing security measures and possibly rolling back the last call for alcohol in response to the shooting.
Castellanos' mother told NBC6 that he was a father to a 2-year-old girl and was set to graduate from Florida International University in May. He was honored with a posthumous degree from FIU in late April.
