Family sues on behalf of man killed at bar
The family of a man who was killed in a fatal shooting at a West Greenville bar and hookah lounge filed a lawsuit last week against the bar’s owner, property manager and the city of Greenville.
On Nov. 26, Keyon Devon Deshawn Robinson, 38, was shot and killed at Red @ 28th on 1237 Pendelton St. Another victim was also struck by gunfire and sustained a non-life-threatening injury. According to warrants from the Greenville Police Department, two men, Micheal Range, 29, and Dyquan Quearo Sweeney, 30, were later charged with murder and possession of a weapon during a violent crime in relation to the shooting.
The lawsuit, filed by attorney Ryan James with RJ Law firm in Greenville on behalf of Robinson’s mother and father, accuses Red’s parent company Red Kulture, LLC, the owner Darren Vincent, and property owner Circa 70, LLC of recklessness and gross negligence.
The lawsuit states that the bar and property owner failed to maintain safe conditions and cited several occurrences where police were called to the establishment. It also claims that the city failed to prevent reoccurring crimes at the bar by patrons.
The city of Greenville is also named in the lawsuit filed on Feb. 2. The complaint alleges the city was negligent by not closing the bar after the high number of police calls to the location and not enforcing city ordinances in response to zoning violations the establishment received.
The city and Circa 70 declined to comment on the lawsuit. Red Kulture and Vincent weren’t immediately available for comment.
Lawsuit claims bar owner, property manager negligent
The lawsuit alleges Range and Sweeney were patrons at Red @ 28th the night of Nov. 26 and were able to leave the bar and return with a loaded firearm without being properly screened by security.
According to the lawsuit, Vincent and Red Kulture knew or should have
known their security was not trained and qualified to ensure safety. The lawsuit also states that Red @ 28th should have had better security policies and that the property owner of the business, Circa 70, should have been wary of the bar’s business practices.
The lawsuit says that the bar’s parent company, Red Kulture and its owner, Darren Vincent, should have had intervention plans to monitor its patrons and hired more qualified security to manage the bar-goer’s safety.
Plaintiffs alleged that Circa 70 should have prevented their tenant, Red Kulture, from creating an unsafe environment and that Circa 70 failed to oversee how the bar operated daily.
According to the lawsuit, Greenville PD has responded to more than a dozen incidents at Red @ 28th, with eight of them occurring between Sept.-Nov. 2023. The lawsuit says that the GPD has responded to 10 gun-related incidents since the bar opened in 2020. The lawsuit argues that the city should have prevented Red @ 28th from continuing to operate due to the number of incidents that took place.
City of Greenville named in lawsuit for zoning violations
According to the lawsuit, Red @ 28th’s liability insurance coverage lapsed in August 2022. Business liability insurance helps a business cover any property damage or injuries caused by the business. It could also help businesses cover any financial losses in a lawsuit. The lawsuit claims that Vincent failed to maintain its insurance.
The complaint alleges that Red Kulture and Vincent should have known of their insurance lapsing and were in violation of the city code. The lawsuit also argues that Circa 70 failed to oversee their tenants and should have known about the insurance lapse.
Five days later following the shooting, the city of Greenville shut down Red @ 28th after finding that the bar violated a conditional use zoning permit. A conditional use zoning permit is a type of contract between a local government and a business or property owner that enables them to conduct operations that current zoning ordinances don’t typically allow.
Both the bar’s zoning and certificate of occupancy permit were revoked.
The complaint argues that the city should have known about the bar’s insurance lapsing and the zoning violations before the incident occurred.
The lawsuit claims the city owed Robinson a duty of care to prevent Red @ 28th from operating in violation of city codes and that the city’s omission to properly act in response to the bar’s violations placed Robinson in danger which resulted in his death.
“I hate the fact that the City of Greenville had to be named because I think they go so far and do so much to help businesses around town. It’s unfortunate but we have a death here and one that we believe, not only could have been prevented but what should have been prevented by certain measures and steps that ought to have been taken, which weren’t,” attorney Ryan James said.
Terry Benjamin II covers public safety and breaking news for The Greenville News and can be reached at tbenjamin@gannett.com or on X @Terrybenji2.