Family of slain man sues city police, nightclub owners for $1.5M
Sean Gamble, Officer William Torbit Jr. killed in shootout at Select Lounge
Updated: 5:43 PM EST Jan 9, 2014
Kim Dacey
A lawsuit filed by the family of Sean Gamble seeks damages against the police department and the owners of the club after he was killed during an altercation with police in 2011.
The family of a Baltimore nightclub patron who was shot and killed alongside a plainclothes police officer during an altercation with police in 2011 has filed a $1.5 million wrongful-death lawsuit.The lawsuit, filed by the family of Sean Gamble, seeks damages against the police department and the owners of the club.Mobile users tap here for video.Thursday marked three years to the day since the incident. The Gamble family filed their civil suit Monday just under the statute of limitations. The lawsuit has 20 counts, alleging negligence, violation of rights and wrongful death.Gamble was shot during a fight that broke out at the Select Lounge in the early-morning hours of Jan. 9, 2011. The shooting involved plainclothes Officer William Torbit Jr. and several other officers.Torbit had responded to a report of trouble at the club, and investigators determined he fired shots as he was stomped by a group of people involved in the fight.Uniformed officers who arrived at the scene said they didn't know Torbit was an officer, so they fired dozens of shots, killing Torbit and wounding four others. Gamble was also killed in the melee; however, the identity of the person who fired the fatal shot is still being disputed.After an investigation, the city state's attorney announced there would be no charges filed in the case.Three years later, the Gamble family has filed a 70-page lawsuit against the owners of the Select Lounge, Baltimore Police Department, four officers on the scene, one deputy major and police commissioner at the time, Fred Bealefeld.The lawsuit alleges the club was overcrowded and had inadequate security that night and that was a contributing factor in the melee that ultimately led to Gamble's death.Contrary to the investigation's findings, the lawsuit states that Gamble was retreating to his car when the officers "suddenly and without warning" opened fire and that "the Baltimore Police Department does not have adequate policies and procedures in place to address when its officers may raise the use of force to deadly force."The documents charge the officers' use of their service pistols was imprudent, dangerous and negligent, as Gamble was unarmed and posed no threat of harm or danger to anyone on the scene.The lawsuit also states Gamble's medical treatment was significantly delayed at the scene and a friend who tried to help him was struck with a Taser by an officer.The documents charge that by opening fire, the officers at the scene, including Torbit, presented an "unreasonable risk of physical harm to others."The lawsuit seeks the $1.5 million in damages for Gamble's mother, father and son for their suffering and Sean Gamble's pain and suffering prior to his death."Sean was conscious and living after being shot, surviving until the time of his death, approximately one hour after the shooting," the documents stated.WBAL-TV 11 News contacted the Baltimore Police Department, which said it doesn't comment on pending litigation.
The family of a Baltimore nightclub patron who was shot and killed alongside a plainclothes police officer during an altercation with police in 2011 has filed a $1.5 million wrongful-death lawsuit.
The lawsuit, filed by the family of Sean Gamble, seeks damages against the police department and the owners of the club.
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Thursday marked three years to the day since the incident. The Gamble family filed their civil suit Monday just under the statute of limitations. The lawsuit has 20 counts, alleging negligence, violation of rights and wrongful death.
Gamble was shot during a fight that broke out at the Select Lounge in the early-morning hours of Jan. 9, 2011. The shooting involved plainclothes Officer William Torbit Jr. and several other officers.
Torbit had responded to a report of trouble at the club, and investigators determined he fired shots as he was stomped by a group of people involved in the fight.
Uniformed officers who arrived at the scene said they didn't know Torbit was an officer, so they fired dozens of shots, killing Torbit and wounding four others. Gamble was also killed in the melee; however, the identity of the person who fired the fatal shot is still being disputed.
After an investigation, the city state's attorney announced there would be no charges filed in the case.
Three years later, the Gamble family has filed a 70-page lawsuit against the owners of the Select Lounge, Baltimore Police Department, four officers on the scene, one deputy major and police commissioner at the time, Fred Bealefeld.
The lawsuit alleges the club was overcrowded and had inadequate security that night and that was a contributing factor in the melee that ultimately led to Gamble's death.
Contrary to the investigation's findings, the lawsuit states that Gamble was retreating to his car when the officers "suddenly and without warning" opened fire and that "the Baltimore Police Department does not have adequate policies and procedures in place to address when its officers may raise the use of force to deadly force."
The documents charge the officers' use of their service pistols was imprudent, dangerous and negligent, as Gamble was unarmed and posed no threat of harm or danger to anyone on the scene.
The lawsuit also states Gamble's medical treatment was significantly delayed at the scene and a friend who tried to help him was struck with a Taser by an officer.
The documents charge that by opening fire, the officers at the scene, including Torbit, presented an "unreasonable risk of physical harm to others."
The lawsuit seeks the $1.5 million in damages for Gamble's mother, father and son for their suffering and Sean Gamble's pain and suffering prior to his death.
"Sean was conscious and living after being shot, surviving until the time of his death, approximately one hour after the shooting," the documents stated.
WBAL-TV 11 News contacted the Baltimore Police Department, which said it doesn't comment on pending litigation.