Joe Mixon of the Cincinnati Bengals is facing a civil lawsuit over the killing of his young neighbor. According to court documents filed this week in Hamilton County, the young boy’s family is suing Mixon and Lamonte Brewer for damages after Brewer shot the child in the right foot while standing in Mixon’s garden.
When Brewer faced charges in March, Hamilton County prosecutor Melissa Powers stated that Mixon was not charged and was never thought to be a suspect. The family claims in the complaint filed on Thursday that Mixon provided the bullets and Zastava M92 rifle that were matched to the shooting weapon.
In the civil action, Mixon is represented by his homeowner’s insurance attorneys. Mixon’s agent, Peter Schaffer, declined to comment.
When Mixon’s trainer, Sean Pena, called 911 at the event, he reported that the youngster was yelling and seemed to be holding a Kel-Tec gun. The child was actually playing Nerf Wars, a game popular among high school students in Cincinnati while brandishing a fake gun. Police are of the opinion that one of Brewer’s shots passed through the weapon.
The county prosecutor’s claim that someone should have known the gun the child was carrying was a toy was reiterated in the complaint. “The defense that the Mixon home occupants felt in fear for their lives from 16-year-old high school students playing Nerf Wars with green, blue, and grey colored toy Nerf rifles in the neighbor’s yard is utterly ridiculous, unbelievable,” the lawsuit declares. “And it is unreasonable that Joe Mixon or anyone in Mixon’s home could have feared for their lives.”
According to the lawsuit, Joe Mixon allegedly asked about the activities of two kids prior to the shooting. The lawsuit claims that both individuals are willing to testify in court on the incident and that Mixon did not feel in danger when the teenagers were playing Nerf wars.
Brewer was accused of having weapons while disabled, one count of tampering with evidence, and felonious assault. However, Joe’s sister Shalonda Mixon was dating Brewer. Evidence tampering was the alleged crime against Shalonda Mixon.
The family suing Joe Mixon is claiming carelessness as well as various other allegations against the Bengals’ seventh-year quarterback. According to county records, the teenage boy’s family sold their property next to Mixon for $2.175 million in June.
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