Mother of 20-year-old killed in Lincoln University homecoming shooting sues school
Attorneys for Ju'Juan Jeffers’ mother allege that Lincoln prioritized the 'college experience' over safety and, in doing so, fostered a campus culture that permitted violent and sometimes fatal acts."
The mother of Ju’Juan Jeffers, the 20-year-old man killed during a shooting at Lincoln University homecoming last October, has filed a lawsuit against the school, the university police chief, and others.
Attorneys for Marchelle Hargroves, Jeffers’ mother, allege that Lincoln prioritized the “college experience” over safety and, in doing so, fostered a campus culture that permitted violent and sometimes fatal acts," according to the suit filed Friday in Common Pleas Court in Philadelphia.
“Lincoln University allowed unrestricted public access to its homecoming events and negligently failed to implement or enforce adequate security measures, including … controlled entry points, attendee screening, handheld wands, metal detectors and/or bag checks,” the suit said.
» READ MORE: Lincoln University announces new plans for event safety following homecoming shooting last year
Jeffers, of Claymont, Del., was one of seven people shot at the Oct. 25 event; he was the only one who died.
Jeffers was not a student at Lincoln, but had been invited to attend, according to the suit.
A university spokesperson said the school does not comment on active litigation. Its police chief, Marc Partee, declined comment.
Also named as a defendant in the lawsuit is Zecqueous Morgan-Thompson, who was charged with possessing a concealed firearm without a license at the event, but has not been charged in Jeffers’ shooting. Prosecutors have said Morgan-Thompson is not a student at Lincoln, nor an alumnus, and that it had been unclear why he was on campus. Law enforcement officials said after the shooting that they had confirmed a match between a fired .380 cartridge at the scene and the Glock 28 semiautomatic pistol that Morgan-Thompson had.
» READ MORE: Lincoln University is conducting an ‘after-action review’ after fatal Homecoming shooting
Morgan-Thompson, the lawsuit said, fired a round during the event, “thereby helping to incite the crowd, which negligently and recklessly contributed to the shooting death of Mr. Jeffers.”
Morgan-Thompson’s attorney in his criminal case did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday. A trial is scheduled this month for Morgan-Thompson; no other charges have been filed in connection with the homecoming shooting or Jeffers’ death.
Other defendants listed in the lawsuit complaint include unnamed Lincoln security officers, as well as unnamed outside companies that Lincoln hired to provide additional security.
Michael T. van der Veen, an attorney for Hargroves, described Jeffers as an honor student, chess player, and “dedicated athlete” who wanted to serve in the military and start his own clothing company.
“He loved basketball and played throughout his school years,” van der Veen said at a news conference Friday announcing the suit. “He had a beautiful life ahead of him.”
At a board of trustees meeting last month, the university announced new safety plans for large events, including holding no outdoor events after dusk, screening guests, and allowing only one registered guest per student for the upcoming Spring Fling event in April.
Lincoln, a historically Black university with 1,650 students in rural Chester County, has been under pressure from its neighbors and Lower Oxford Township to make changes since the shooting.
Several officials in Lower Oxford had reported ongoing problems with parking, trash on neighbors’ lawns, disturbances, and, in some cases, crime when the university hosts events. After thousands gathered for homecoming, emergency personnel had to use all-terrain vehicles to transport patients on stretchers because ambulances could not access the campus, given how many cars were parked around the venue, they said.
» READ MORE: One dead, six others shot at Lincoln University
The township’s board of supervisors is expected to vote at their meeting at 7 p.m. Monday on a special events ordinance that would require a permit process for large events.
According to the lawsuit, thousands packed Lincoln’s International Cultural Center parking lot after the homecoming football game, and there was alcohol consumption.
It took hours for Jeffers to receive medical care after he was shot, the complaint says, because the roads were clogged around the university.
» READ MORE: Lincoln University is facing pressure from its Chester County neighbors after homecoming shooting
“Multiple invitees were forced to render emergency medical aid because emergency medical personnel could not promptly access and reach him,” the suit said. “Lincoln University knew or should have known that the Homecoming football game and celebrations would attract a substantial number of attendees to its campus and were on notice of the need for protocols for adequate safety of and about the University.”
Partee, the Lincoln police chief, “failed to take reasonable steps to correct or remedy these dangerous conditions,” the suit said.
Concerns about behavior during large events had been raised with Lincoln officials by township officials and others over several years, but no adequate action was taken, the suit said.