3rd Walmart employee sues, says she narrowly missed being shot as gunman chased after her
A third employee who claims she narrowly missed being shot when a supervisor at a Chesapeake Walmart opened fire in the store’s break room last month has filed a lawsuit against the mega retailer.
Briana Marie Tyler was waiting in the break room for her shift to begin when Andre Bing came in and began shooting, according to a complaint she filed in Chesapeake Circuit Court earlier this month.
Tyler says she ran out the room, down a hallway and into the store’s retail area as fast as she could. Bing chased after her, continuing to fire his 9 mm gun as he ran towards her, the lawsuit said. Tyler ran to the parking lot, where her mother eventually picked her up after getting a frantic call from Tyler.
Once home, Tyler discovered a bullet hole in the hood of her jacket. The hole indicated the bullet had missed her head by just inches, according to her complaint, which included a photo of the dark-colored jacket. She later learned from a person associated with Walmart that her dramatic escape from Bing had been captured on the store’s surveillance video, the complaint said.
Bing, 31, an overnight manager who’d worked at the store on Sam’s Circle since 2010, killed six employees and wounded four others before turning the gun on himself. The incident happened just two days before Thanksgiving. Police later released a note found on Bing’s phone in which he complained of being mocked and harassed by his co-workers.
Tyler’s lawsuit is the third lodged against the retail giant by employees working the night of the mass shooting. The first was filed by Donya Prioleau, an overnight stocker and trainer at the store, just a week later. James Kelly, also an overnight stocker, filed his claim about a week after Prioleau.
Two Richmond attorneys who represent Walmart in those cases didn’t respond Wednesday to a request for comment on the latest lawsuit.
All three employees who’ve sued claim they were in the break room when Bing began his rampage. And all three say they narrowly missed being shot. Each is seeking $50 million in damages, and each alleges Walmart had known about troubling behavior displayed by Bing long before the incident occurred, and that employees had complained to supervisors about him.
Tyler’s lawsuit alleges “it was well known” that Bing was a person to avoid, and that he had a history of disturbing behavior, such as threatening, berating and harassing fellow employees, and saying he’d kill them if he ever got fired. The complaint also alleges Bing had been demoted by management for “improper and disturbing” interactions with others, but was later reinstated as a team leader.
The lawsuit claims Tyler injured her legs and experienced acute chest pain as she ran from Bing but offers no further detail. Since the incident, she has suffered physical and psychological pain; paranoia; night fright; fear of dark, crowded and public places; fear of leaving her home; and fear of enrolling her 4-year-old son in a public school, the complaint alleges.
All three lawsuits from the employees were filed in Chesapeake Circuit Court. But on Monday, Walmart sought to have the cases moved to U.S. District Court in Norfolk, citing the fact that the parties involved reside in multiple states as a reason for transferring it to federal court. Each of the people suing lives in Virginia, but Walmart is a Delaware corporation with its principle place of business in Bentonville, Arkansas.
Jane Harper, jane.harper@pilotonline.com
