Westfield Century City won a round in court Wednesday in a lawsuit brought on behalf of three young children of a man fatally shot outside a restaurant at the mall in 2020.
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Edward B. Moreton granted a motion by the mall’s attorneys to dismiss the assault and battery cause of action against their client and said the plaintiffs cannot seek punitive damages because the only remaining claim against the shopping center is for negligence.
Also named as defendants are Javier’s Century City, a Mexican food restaurant, and the accused shooter, 27-year-old Brandon Hinton, who was arrested in Baltimore in March 2020 by FBI agents and extradited to Los Angeles.
Ryan Deshane Givens Jr., 29, of Los Angeles, was killed in the shooting outside Javier’s in the 10200 block of Santa Monica Boulevard.
In dismissing the assault and battery claim against the mall, the judge found the mall was not legally responsible for Hinton’s alleged actions on Jan. 20, 2020.
“There is no allegation that (the mall) engaged in any conduct that would fall within the definitions of assault or battery,” Moreton wrote. “Further, there is no allegation that (the mall) was vicariously liable for Hinton.”
The 10:30 p.m. shooting occurred after an argument between women that began in the restaurant, moved outside and “turned fatal once the males became involved,” according to the lawsuit.
The plaintiffs allege the argument should have prompted mall security or the restaurant staff to call the police at the first sign the situation could become violent, especially because alcohol is served at Javier’s.
Hinton armed himself and chased Givens around the outside of the mall and shot him multiple times, the suit alleges. He died at a hospital early the next morning.