BALTIMORE — Victims and surviving family members of the 2023 'Brooklyn Day' mass shooting are now suing the Housing Authority of Baltimore City.
The incident left Aaliyah Gonzalez, 18, and Kylis Fagbemi, 20, dead and 28 others injured.
One month following the shooting Baltimore City issued a multi-agency after-action report detailing several mistakes made that may have helped prevent the situation from spiraling out of control.
RELATED: Mistakes made leading up to Brooklyn mass shooting
In that report, which also placed some blame on the police department's preparation, the Housing Authority denied having any prior notification regarding the 'Brooklyn Day' festivities.
Attorneys at Hansel Law who are representing the victims families say that's false.
“The Housing Authority was well aware of the annual Brooklyn Day event, but failed to provide adequate security," attorney Cary J. Hansel told WMAR-2 News. "The Housing Authority’s failure to protect the people of Baltimore created the conditions for this tragedy. The families are owed justice.”
Hansel cites emails from the Housing Authority soliciting volunteers leading up to the event as proof they were aware.
Despite police having to shut down 'Brooklyn Day' in 2022 due to overcrowding, the lawsuit alleges the Housing Authority passed on hiring private security beforehand, instead assigning guards to four properties at other locations.
Only after the mass shooting did they hire private security to patrol Brooklyn homes, the lawsuit claims.
MORE: Two BPD members fired over Brooklyn Day mass shooting, 10 others punished
Another complaint mentioned in the lawsuit involves the Housing Authority's after-hours emergency hotline which apparently went unanswered after residents had called reporting concerns about the 'Brooklyn Day' event.
The families are seeking hundreds-of-thousands of dollars in damages from the Housing Authority as result.
While multiple arrests have been made related to the shooting, no one has been charged with murder.
We've reached out to the Housing Authority for comment and are awaiting to hear back.
