Pensacola teens are being killed at apartments owned by Marquis Group. Law firm demands action.

Three years after the family of murdered Pensacola rapper Kuanterion "Frozonee" Rivers received a $5 million settlement from Oakwood Terrace apartment complex where he was killed, their lawyers are demanding the property owners follow through on promises to make significant changes to the safety of the complex.

Adam Finkel and Michael Haggard of the Haggard Law Firm filed a lawsuit against Oakwood Terrace's property owners, Marquis Group, for their failure to provide safety in Rivers' death — eventually winning the Rivers family a $5 million settlement.

Now, Finkel says he's holding a press conference in Pensacola, calling on Marquis Group to ensure security measures on their properties or sell it to someone who will.

"We've asked the Marquis Group to change their ways and actually make a difference to keep their properties safer and their residents and guests safer, and things are just not happening," Finkel told the News Journal. "One of two things has to happen — they either need to hire people that actually know what they’re doing or they need to sell the property."

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Finkel told the News Journal that he plans to hold a press conference Friday at 12:30 p.m. at the Forest Creek Apartments, another Marquis Group property, to rally the community to demand the Marquis Group makes a change.

"The purpose of the press conference is very much for us to get out there and to call for community help," Finkel said. "It's calling the Marquis Group, it's calling the activists to get involved and make phone calls for Marquis Group to come down to Pensacola and make a statement again and say, 'This is what we're going to do.'"

Who is Kuanterion "Frozonee" Rivers and why is Haggard Law Firm involved?

Rivers was an 18-year-old Pensacola rapper known by his fanbase as "Frozonee," who died after Axtavian Deshaun Harris shot him six times while on Oakwood Terrace property in June 2020.

Harris was later convicted of second-degree murder in November 2021 and was sentenced to life in prison. His accomplice, Jaylen Wright, was convicted of manslaughter in September 2021.

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After the shooting, Rivers' family hired Haggard Law Firm and sued Oakwood Terrace and The Marquis Group alleging the complex had become a "war zone" due to the poor management and security. A year later, The Marquis Group and Rivers' family settled for $5 million.

"Simply put, criminals feel safer within those walls than law-abiding citizens," Finkel said in 2022, referring to Oakwood Terrace. "And why is that? Because criminals know the truth — that the Marquis Group turns a blind eye to this property."

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Why is the press conference at Forest Creek Apartments?

Finkel said they're hosting the press conference at Forest Creek, another Marquis Group-owned property, since that is where 16-year-old Jeffrey Kennel was murdered in 2020 by Trenton Dominic Capri Newkirk on Dec. 29, 2020.

Deputies responded to the apartment complex the night of the shooting around 11 p.m. and found Kennell lying on the ground in front of the building with several gunshot wounds. After being transported to local hospital, Kennell was pronounced dead.

Newkirk was later indicted and convicted of first-degree premeditated murder by a jury Feb. 17, 2023. He has not been sentenced.

Kennell's family sued Forest Creek and Marquis Group for Kennell's death, saying the property owners failed to monitor and repair the broken side gate where Newkirk entered to shoot the teenager. Finkel says he and Haggard settled the Kennell family's case alongside the Rivers family's case.

Marquis Group settled with the Kennell family for $5 million.

This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Oakwood Terrace owner scrutinized by Pensacola Rapper Frozonee lawyers