SUTHERLAND SPRINGS, Texas – The mother and father of a victim in the Sutherland Springs church massacre are filing a $50 million lawsuit against the federal government claiming the church shooter should not have been allowed to purchase the firearm he used in the shooting, according to court documents.
John Bryan Holcombe was one of 26 people who were killed by former U.S. Air Force Airman Devin Kelley on Nov. 5, 2017. Nearly two dozen others were wounded in the shooting at the First Baptist Church of Sutherland Springs, which is about 35 miles southeast of San Antonio.
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J.B. Holcombe's parents, Joe and Claryce Holcombe, are suing the federal government for $25 million each for the wrongful death of their son, according to the lawsuit.
The lawsuit says "that while the shooter 'pulled the trigger,' resulting in JB Holcombe's death, it was failures of the United States Air Force and others that allowed the shooter to purchase, own and/or possess the semiautomatic rifle, ammunition and body armor he used in the shooting spree, and such failures were a proximate cause, in whole or in part, of the injuries to and death of JB Holcombe."
The lawsuit says Kelley should not have been able to purchase the weapon he used in the shooting because he was court-martialed and convicted of assault against his wife and young stepson. He was sentenced to 12 months confinement in a Navy brig in San Diego and was given a bad conduct discharge. According to the lawsuit, that conviction made it illegal for Kelley to purchase the firearm.
The lawsuit says the Air Force failed to properly report the criminal arrest and conviction information into a federal database, which would have prevented Kelley from purchasing the weapon.
The lawsuit says the Air Force routinely failed to report such required criminal arrest and conviction information.
Each parent filed a claim for $25 million.