Survivors and Families Sue U.S. Government Over Mass Shooting
AP Photo/Matt Rourke
More than 100 survivors and family members of victims from Maine’s deadliest mass shooting are suing the federal government, claiming the U.S. Army failed to prevent a tragedy they describe as “one of the most preventable mass shootings in American history,” according to the Associated Press.
The lawsuit, filed in federal court, stems from the October 2023 shootings in Lewiston, where Army reservist Robert Card killed 18 people at a bowling alley and a bar and grill. Card was found dead two days later from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
An independent commission appointed by Maine’s governor later concluded that there were multiple missed opportunities for intervention by both Army officials and civilian law enforcement as Card’s mental health declined.
The lawsuit accuses the U.S. government of negligence, arguing that it “directly and proximately caused the mass shooting.” It alleges that Army officials were aware that Card had become paranoid, delusional, and violent months before the attack. Despite recognizing that he had access to firearms, the Army allegedly failed to follow through on a promise to remove his guns.
The suit also claims the Army withheld information from and misled local law enforcement, preventing timely intervention. One of the most serious warnings came in a September 2023 text from a fellow reservist who said, “I believe he’s going to snap and do a mass shooting.”
Card had been hospitalized during a training exercise in July 2023 while his unit was working with West Point cadets in New York. Despite concerns raised during his hospitalization, the lawsuit alleges that Army Reserve officials failed to ensure he took his prescribed medication or followed up on mental health care after returning home to Bowdoin, Maine.
According to the legal filing, the Army ignored its own mandatory procedures and failed to escalate serious concerns through the chain of command—failures the plaintiffs say contributed directly to the tragedy.
Attorneys representing the victims and their families plan to release more information during a news conference scheduled for Wednesday in Lewiston, near the site of the shootings.
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