Victims impacted by the violent incident that occurred on Bourbon Street in New Orleans during New Year’s have brought a legal case against the city’s authorities and private firms responsible for advising on security measures in the French Quarter, citing negligence.
The individual behind the attack, identified as Shamsud-Din Jabbar from Texas, caused the deaths of 14 individuals and left 57 others injured by driving a Ford F-150 into crowds who were celebrating the holiday on the renowned New Orleans street at about 3 a.m. on January 1st. Jabbar was fatally shot by law enforcement officers in a confrontation.
“This tragic event has left a lasting impact on New Orleans, with many individuals changing their routines and avoiding Bourbon Street and the city as a whole due to safety concerns. The emotional toll is immeasurable, with numerous people facing severe depression, anxiety, and trauma from the harrowing experience. The community has been profoundly affected by the unforeseeable consequences of this incident,” remarked Aaron Maples, a partner at Maples & Connick.
Romanucci & Blandin, a mass disaster law firm that has represented victims in multiple recent mass casualty events and attacks, partnered with New Orleans-based law firm Maples & Connick LLC to file the civil suit that alleges the mass tragedy was not only predictable but preventable.
Investigators search the rental home used by Shamsud-Din Jabbar in New Orleans on Jan. 2, 2025. (Kat Ramirez for Fox News Digital)
It continues, “Despite years of preparation and warnings of motor vehicle-based attacks, New Orleans officials and their hired consultants and contractors recklessly and willfully put the New Year’s celebrants at risk by focusing reconstruction of safety systems to be ready for the Super Bowl at the expense of New Year’s Eve and the Sugar Bowl.
“The City deviated from its own public safety plan for New Year’s Eve and the Sugar Bowl, a decision that completely exposed Bourbon Street to just the type of attack they were warned to take all reasonable precautions to stop.”
The city began planning updated security measures, including bollards meant to stop vehicles from entering busy streets, in the French Quarter in 2017.
“The French Quarter is often densely packed with pedestrians and represents an area where a mass casualty incident could occur,” a 2017 report states. “This area also presents a risk and target area for terrorism that the FBI has identified as a concern that the City must address.
“Following the attacks in Nice, France; in London, England; and the recent NYC Times Square incident that cited bollards saved lives, it has become clear how popular tourist areas can be threatened by attackers with vehicles and weapons.”
A separate, confidential 2019 report obtained by Fox News from security consulting firm Interfor International warned that Bourbon Street was the “most high-profile target” in New Orleans for a terror attack.
The 60-page security assessment commissioned by the French Quarter Management District states, “The current bollard system on Bourbon Street does not appear to work.”
Federal authorities said Jabbar had previously visited New Orleans on two occasions, once on Oct. 30, 2024, and once on Nov. 10, 2024. He also visited Cairo and Toronto prior to the attack, the FBI said.
While Jabbar apparently acted alone, authorities are investigating whether he had any accomplices.
