Two victims sue Des Moines Public Schools for security lapses prior to East High shooting

Two women — one who lost her son, the other who suffered life-changing injuries — have sued Des Moines Public Schools for failing to prevent a fatal shooting outside East High School in 2022.

Jose Lopez, 15, was killed in a hail of bullets in the March 7, 2022, drive-by attack, while East High students Jessica Lopez (no relation) and Kemery Ortega were both shot in the head and seriously injured.

Prosecutors charged 10 youths with being involved in the attack. All have pleaded guilty, and eight have received sentences ranging from probation to life in prison.

Now Deborha Perez, Jose Lopez's mother, and Jessica Lopez say the district shares the blame for what happened to them. Jessica Lopez filed suit Feb. 8, and Perez on Feb. 20, both alleging the school district was negligent, created a public nuisance by failing to police its property, and has since failed to provide documents requested under Iowa's open records law.

The complaints, which are largely identical in their allegations, seek undisclosed damages as well as court orders compelling the district to improve campus safety and to comply with the open records law, said Scott Wadding, who is representing both plaintiffs.

"No child should have to live in fear of being beaten, bullied, or shot at school," he said in an email. "My clients are not only seeking monetary relief to hold the district accountable. My clients are also seeking injunctive relief to help make sure that the district does what’s needed to stop the violence and prevent shootings like this from happening again."

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Phil Roeder, a spokesman for the district, said it has not yet been served with the complaints and declined to comment beyond saying it will "vigorously defend" itself against any claims in court.

District knew of feud, failed to intervene, plaintiffs say

According to court filings and attorneys in the criminal cases, the teens charged in the shooting were looking for a rival with whom they expected to have a fight, and eventually spotted a target, Jose Lopez's brother, in the East High parking lot.

In total, more than 40 shots were fired from at least six guns from three vehicles, according to court records, although several defendants claimed afterward they were along for the ride and weren't aware there was to be a shooting.

Previously: Four teens sentenced in 2022 shootings outside Des Moines' East High; longest is 60 years

But the district, according to Jessica Lopez and Perez, should have known something like this was coming. In their complaints, they characterize the shooting as part of an "eight-month violent feud" that involved multiple altercations, some with dangerous weapons, on and around school property, including at the East High parking lot where the shooting occurred.

In fact, they say, the district did know. The complaints quote a November 2021 voicemail left by a "restorative safety coordinator" for East High School describing an altercation in the parking lot featuring a crowbar and lengths of lumber and involving the teen who was the target in the 2022 shooting. That same school employee, they say, left another voicemail hours after the shooting, saying, "I was feeling a large amount of blame on my shoulders."

The school's safety challenges also were common knowledge among East students, the plaintiffs say, citing social media posts and articles in the student newspaper on the issue, as well as concerns raised before the shooting by a group of parents alarmed at the rise in violence at East.

"At all material times before March 7, 2022, the district knew that the East parking lot was a hotbed for criminal activity, including violent fights involving students and non-students alike, drug activity, and underage drinking," the complaints say.

Where were the school resource officers?

The district's response to these challenges, the plaintiffs claim, was deeply inadequate.

The complaints in particular fault the district for ending its contract in 2021 to have school resource officers from the Des Moines Police Department present in its schools. Instead, the plaintiffs say, the district entrusted campus safety to "inexperienced, inadequately trained, and insufficiently supervised restoration and safety coordinators and campus monitors."

Compounding the problem, the complaints allege, was that the district lacked "basic security measures" such as security cameras and controlled access to school buildings. They note that after the shooting, the School Board voted to double its spending on security, including hiring additional security staff and buying metal detectors, patrol vehicles and other equipment.

"The district’s multifaceted basic safety failures and grossly inadequate security protocols led to the shooting on March 7, 2022 at East and the plaintiffs’ injuries and death," the plaintiffs say.

William Morris covers courts for the Des Moines Register. He can be contacted at wrmorris2@registermedia.com or 715-573-8166.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: 2022 drive-by shooting leads to Des Moines Public Schools lawsuits