The family of Afa Ah Loo, the man fatally shot at a No Kings protest march in Salt Lake City, is suing the organizers of that demonstration. They are also suing the man who county prosecutors have charged with manslaughter.
A cascade of negligence by organizers produced a situation that ended in Afa’s death, said the family’s attorneys and Ah Loo’s widow, Laura Ah Loo.
“This is the tragic cost of doing something poorly when people's safety is on the line,” Ah Loo said at a news conference announcing her civil suit.
Critical decisions, she said, were made without the necessary thought and planning.
Thirty-nine-year-old Afa was shot at a No Kings protest he attended in Salt Lake City last June. It coincided with similar events nationwide. Prosecutors say an armed volunteer for the protest, Matthew Scott Alder, fired three bullets at a man who was carrying a gun, Arturo Gamboa. One of those bullets struck Afa, an innocent bystander in the crowd.
In planning the demonstration, Ah Loo’s lawyers say the organizers failed to create a “reasonably safe plan” for the march.
“Defendants' breaches of these duties resulted in a perfect storm of negligence that caused the only known fatality among a march of millions of Americans,” the legal complaint reads.
As defendants, the complaint lists Alder and five Utah residents who Ah Loo’s attorneys believe had some leadership in Utah 50501, the local chapter of the National 50501 movement. The national group disavowed the local chapter after the shooting. The complaint also lists another Utahn that Ah Loo’s attorneys believe assisted with the rally.
One of the biggest questions in the aftermath of the shooting was who organized the protest.
The protest permit was filed under the name “Michael Andaman” and the organization name “Utah Protest and Rally LLC.” As has been reported, no one has been able to identify that individual, and it is suspected to be an alias.
Salt Lake City has since changed its permitting process.
One of Ah Loo’s attorneys, Jim McConkie, said they landed on the names after some community members came forward with information about the organizers.
“The thing that's striking to us is that the organizers in Utah, the No Kings rally, departed from the safety rules and regulations that the national group required,” McConkie said.
The national group said “no weapons.” But according to the complaint, “In the days leading up to the Rally, Leaders of Utah 50501, in addition to asking its own members to carry concealed weapons, sought additional armed volunteers to act as ‘peacekeepers’ at the event.” The permit application submitted to the city did not include that the event would have armed security volunteers.
The complaint alleges organizers asked the group Armed Queers to provide security for the event. Attorneys allege Alder was a part of that group.
“Based upon belief and information, the Leaders, believing that an armed clash with President Trump's supporters was likely, actively supported the arming of Utah 50501 members and the need for armed security at the rally,” the complaint states.
Ah Loo’s attorneys allege organizers sought additional personnel resources from Armed Queers less than 24 hours before the rally. That’s not enough time, the complaint states, to investigate the background or experience of volunteers, and also not enough time to offer appropriate training.
The complaint lists several things the organizers should have done, but didn’t, to set the stage for a safe rally. That includes informing others that armed security would be there, as well as making sure those security volunteers were vetted and had proper training.
The complaint accuses Alder of negligence and failing to de-escalate the situation before pulling out his gun.
“The No Kings organizers in Salt Lake City, without due regard to training and to accountability, empowered Matt Alder, a so-called Peacekeeper, to fire into a crowd containing men, women and likely children,” attorney Richard Lambert said. “When you empower someone with the ability to use deadly force and to kill, along with that power, comes great accountability and great responsibility.”
The complaint says Gamboa, based on video surveillance, didn’t appear to be an imminent threat. But even if Alder concluded Gamboa was, the complaint alleges that Alder improperly fired his weapon.
“Before using lethal force, Defendant Alder had a duty to ‘clear the zone’ behind his target to ensure bullets intended to immobilize or kill a perceived threat would not strike innocent bystanders,” the complaint reads.
Ah Loo’s lawyers are not coming after any national organizers, nor are they suing Arturo Gamboa, the man with a rifle whom Alder targeted.
“As Utah is an open-carry state, Gamboa's carrying of a weapon near a protest, while possibly alarming to some, was not illegal,” the complaint states.
Now that a civil suit has been filed, McConkie said they’ll use the courts to get more information about the situation that they couldn’t get otherwise, and more defendants could be added.
Ah Loo’s attorneys said they are seeking financial compensation and asking for a jury trial. They hope that as more information comes out, there will be legislative action to prevent a situation like this from happening at future public gatherings.
“The weight of losing my husband has been felt every minute of every day by me and by our now 7- and 5-year-old children,” Ah Loo said.
