ROUND ROCK, Texas (KXAN) — The church that organized the Round Rock Juneteenth Festival in 2024 is facing a civil lawsuit in the wake of the mass shooting that occurred at the event.
Two people were killed and 14 others were injured in a shooting at a Juneteenth event held on June 15 last year at Old Settlers Park in Round Rock. Police found two dozen shell casings near the vendor area, which had been fired from four separate guns, according to the arrest affidavit.
Terrell Hatch, 18; Payton Green, 20; Teryn Jackson, 18; and Amarjay Terry, 17, were arrested in May in connection with the case. They face charges of engaging in criminal activity along with conspiracy to commit aggravated assault, a first-degree felony. Police previously arrested Ricky Thompson III, Keyshawn Dixon and a juvenile who has not been identified.
The civil lawsuit alleges that One Way Baptist Church and its “clients, ministers and employees negligently allowed the area to become dangerous.”
The lawsuit also lists Dixon and Thompson as defendants in this case for “negligent creation of business.”[ing] “An unreasonably dangerous environment.”
Two victims in the case are seeking more than $1 million in financial relief in this civil case. One of the victims was “shot in the shoulder” when the shooting occurred. The other victim “suffered and continues to suffer psychological trauma from the incident,” the lawsuit says.
The victim’s lawyer said in a statement to KXAN:
For over a year, we have made repeated efforts to engage in productive dialogue with the insurance carrier for Juneteenth celebration hosted by One Way Baptist Church & The Voice. Unfortunately, these efforts were not successful.
Each of my clients sincerely hoped to resolve this issue without resorting to litigation. However, the insurer has made it clear that it refuses to accept any responsibility for the shocking lack of security at what was publicly advertised as a safe, family-friendly community event.
My clients were victims of a mass shooting while simply trying to enjoy celebrating the holiday with their families. I look forward to presenting their cases to a Travis County jury and seeking the justice they deserve.”
Corey Clements, Victims’ Advocate
KXAN has reached out multiple times to One Way Baptist Church for an interview or comment on this story and has not yet received a response. We will update this story if there is a response.
Clorine Williams was at the Round Rock Juneteenth Festival in 2024. When the shooting happened, Williams says, there was “chaos.”
“I don’t think they ever thought they would need the highest level of security for this type of festival,” Williams said. “I think they had gone so many years without experiencing any violence that they let their guard down.”
Williams also said he doesn’t believe the church is solely responsible for what happened at the festival, as the city also helped organize the event.
KXAN reached out to the City of Round Rock regarding this lawsuit, and they said they have no comment at this time.
But before [shooting]“Juneteenth was special, it was beautiful, it had 15 years — consecutive years of beauty at Old Settlers Park,” Williams said. “I really hate that this happened, but I will say it was very chaotic. It was crazy and very scary and very traumatic. A lot of people lost their lives, and we’re still mourning to this day.”