PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. — Attorneys and family members came together Wednesday to announce a lawsuit against a gas station owner following a fatal shooting in Palm Beach Gardens nearly a year ago.
Jacqueline Barthelemy, a chef at a country club, stopped at a Chevron gas station on Alternate A1A just before 11 p.m. on the night of Sept. 11, 2020.
Unbeknownst to Barthelemy, 36, there was an armed robbery in progress.
MORE: Family suing gas station after bystander killed during robbery
"She went inside trying to help the clerk that was held at gunpoint, and she was shot and killed," crime victim attorney Michael Haggard said.
Barthelemy's family, including her father, has filed a negligent security lawsuit against the gas station owner.
Haggard said Wednesday that the gas station owner is guilty of "numerous failures" on that night and violated industry standards by not surveilling the area for trespassers ahead of closing time.
"The robbers entered the store as his clerk was supposed to be doing guardianship responsibilities, doing a tour around the property,” Haggard said. "As the [robbers] came into the store, (the clerk) wasn't paying any attention."
Attorneys also claim that concrete walls on the property obstruct the views of the gas station clerks, causing security problems.
Chuck Barthelemy, the victim’s father, described his daughter as kind-hearted and losing her like a "nightmare."
WATCH THE NEWS CONFERENCE BELOW:
"I've seen this on TV before, you just don't realize until you go through it of how awful it is," Chuck Barthelemy said. "For the first couple of months [after her killing], I couldn't function."
Jacqueline Barthelemy leaves behind a teenage son, who was 14 years old at the time of the deadly shooting.
Attorneys said the lawsuit against the owners of the gas station was filed in April.
However, they held the news conference Wednesday to bring attention to the situation ahead of the busy Labor Day travel weekend and the upcoming one-year anniversary of the deadly shooting.
Two suspects in the fatal shooting, Ezequiel Nunez, 18, and Sania La Shay Williams Cox, 19, were arrested shortly after the homicide.
WPTV has contacted the gas station owner involved in the case for comment.
Read the full lawsuit below:
