SEATTLE — A jury has ordered the city of Seattle to pay over $30 million in damages related to the 2020 fatal shooting of 16-year-old Antonio Mays Jr. in the Capitol Hill Occupied Protest (CHOP) zone, a region that drew international attention following the murder of George Floyd. The King County jury reached the verdict after 12 days of deliberation, with the finding of negligence against the city’s emergency response team highlighted prominently.
The jury concluded that the city failed to provide adequate medical assistance in the wake of Mays’ shooting, a circumstance believed to have contributed to his death. During the trial, it was revealed that, rather than receiving immediate aid from first responders, Mays was taken by private vehicle to seek medical help. Witnesses described a frantic scene where they attempted to flag down an ambulance that ultimately drove away, prolonging the time it took to connect with medical personnel.
Attorneys representing Mays’ family argued that the teen could have survived had he received proper medical attention sooner; they emphasized that delays in clearing his airway during the critical moments post-shooting were pivotal. Conversely, the city maintained that the severity of Mays’ injury, a gunshot wound to the head, rendered any emergency response ineffective in preventing his death.
The jury awarded $4 million to Mays’ estate and $26 million to his father, Antonio Mays Sr., who reacted emotionally to the verdict. The determination comes amid broader discussions around police accountability and emergency response protocols, particularly in areas designated as protest zones.
The CHOP zone emerged in June 2020 as an area where demonstrators occupied several city blocks in response to Floyd’s death at the hands of police. The Seattle protest sparked national debate on police funding and reform, prompting then-President Donald Trump to criticize the situation, claiming parts of the city had fallen under the control of anarchists.
Mays was shot in a stolen vehicle, a white Jeep, close to the protest area along with a 14-year-old companion. While the incident was captured in a livestream, it did not reveal the identity of the shooter. Witnesses claimed that armed protesters near the barricades fired shots at the Jeep, leading to widespread anxiety in the area. No arrests have been made, and the case remains unsolved.
Before his death, Mays had traveled from southern California to engage in the civil rights movement without informing his father of his plans. He left behind a note, expressing his desire to make his father proud. Following the teen’s death, his father filed a missing person report when he discovered the note shortly after Mays’ arrival in Seattle.
Judge Sean O’Donnell, presiding over the trial, limited the city’s defense, prohibiting arguments related to Mays being implicated in a felony at the time of his death. The judge ruled that even assuming such allegations were true, there was inadequate evidence to establish a direct link between the alleged felony and the cause of death.
In a statement following the verdict, the city attorney’s office expressed its condolences, acknowledging the tragedy of Mays’ death, and indicated it is considering potential legal options moving forward. The case has ignited further conversations about public safety, emergency response protocols, and the ongoing conversation surrounding racial justice in America.