DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN) — The family of Brandon Cooper, a Lyft driver killed in January 2022, announced a wrongful death lawsuit against the rideshare company and the teens involved Wednesday morning.
On Jan. 26, 35-year-old Brandon Cooper of Beavercreek was found dead with gunshot wounds in the front seat of his car which had crashed on the 1000 block of Ferguson Avenue in Dayton.
Around the same time, police responded to another incident involving another rideshare driver. Police said a female driver was robbed of her wallet, phone and vehicle at gunpoint by four males. Police later found the woman’s stolen vehicle at a residence where four juveniles all aged 15-16 were arrested.
According to the Montgomery County Prosecutor’s Office, 4 teens were arrested in connection to the killing of Cooper.
- Teen one had charges dismissed.
- The second teen was held on unrelated charges.
- Teen three had an amenability hearing, where a judge ruled they will stand trial as an adult; his case is going to the Montgomery County Grand Jury.
- An amenability hearing is being held in January 2023 for the fourth teen to determine if he will stand trial as an adult.
Charges for teens three and four include murder, felonious assault, grand theft auto and tampering with evidence.
On Wednesday, Dec. 7, Brittany Cooper, his wife, and Michelle Cooper, his mother, along with their attorneys will announced a wrongful death lawsuit against Lyft and the teens at 10 a.m. on Wednesday.
Cooper’s mother spoke out after the incident in January saying, “I just want them to know what they stole from us. We are devastated. We are heartbroken. And for what? Because they wanted his car? Something he worked hard for.”
According to their attorneys, Cooper did not know that the teens were under the age of 18, “and policies supposedly implemented by Lyft should have precluded them from even getting in Mr. Cooper’s car.”
This marks the second wrongful death lawsuit filed this week.
