New Orleans Bourbon Street Incident Investigation
New Orleans Bourbon Street Incident Investigation
On New Year’s Day 2025, a Wednesday morning, a former United States Army staff sergeant drove a pickup truck at high speeds through Bourbon Street, one of the busiest tourist attractions in New Orleans, Louisiana’s French Quarter. Orleans Parish, within which New Orleans resides, is the third most populous parish in Louisiana, not including the 15-plus million tourists who visit the city annually. Including the perpetrator of this tragedy, at least 15 people were killed, and an additional 35 individuals are known to have suffered injuries, including two New Orleans police officers whom the assailant shot as part of the truck ramming attack.
What happened in the City of New Orleans on New Year’s Day?
As revelers enjoyed the start of the new year on January 1, 2025, a truck traveling at a high rate of speed avoided a single-car police presence near an entry point on Bourbon Street from Canal Street. The truck drove down the sidewalk into a crowd of people congregated on Bourbon Street, ramming them and killing 14 and injuring dozens more.
Bollards and barricades typically utilized by the City of New Orleans and the New Orleans Police Department were reportedly unavailable due to maintenance after Mardi Gras, part of a years-long problem, ahead of the upcoming Super Bowl. Officials may have known since 2017 of the potential for an incident on Bourbon Street and also may have known about a 2019 report by Interfor International for the French Quarter Management District about the need to improve security, including repair or replacement of the bollard system, per CBS reporting.
The driver exited his rented pickup truck and was engaged by multiple New Orleans Police Department officers, who shot and killed the attacker. One of the responding police officers sustained gunshot wounds from the encounter.
Civil investigation into lack of safety for victims
Within days of the deadly tragedy, the mass disaster attorneys at Romanucci & Blandin joined with injury attorneys at Maples & Connick in Louisiana to launch a robust civil investigation into all parties who contributed to the lack of security on Bourbon Street on New Year’s Eve. The team has deep experience in these investigations and is examining the roles of officials at the City of New Orleans, the New Orleans Police Department, and various contractors and organizations who may have had a responsibility to ensure public safety.
In this era when mass tragedies, including pedestrian attacks by motor vehicles, are sadly common and it is the responsibility of the City, Police and security contractors to do all they can to use available and reasonable technology and tactics to keep people safe.
In late January 2025, less than a month after the tragedy in New Orleans, the mass disaster attorneys at Romanucci & Blandin and Maples & Connick filed a civil lawsuit on behalf of nearly two dozen people harmed or killed in the New Year’s Day tragedy.
Who was Shamsud-Din Jabbar?
Law enforcement officials have identified Shamsud-Din Jabbar, a US Army veteran and U.S. citizen, as the man who committed the truck attack on New Orleans’ Bourbon Street. Jabbar spent a decade in the Army in human resources and information technology before he left the service. After his time in the military, the 42-year-old Shamsud-Din Jabbar started multiple failed businesses and recently went through his third divorce while living in Houston, Texas. His youngest says that “he was just his calm, well-mannered, well-tempered self” in their last phone call before the tragedy. Shamsud-Din’s actions on New Year’s Day “It’s completely contradictory to who he was and how his family and his friends know him,” Abdur-Rahim Jabbar, 24, told the Associated Press and NOLA.com.
FBI and law enforcement investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has opened a federal investigation into the event alongside local and state law enforcement entities. Special agents from the FBI are looking into Shamsud-Din Jabbar’s motives and identifying how to prevent a future mass casualty incident on Bourbon Street and the French Quarter.
Response to the Bourbon Street incident by the City of New Orleans and the State of Louisiana
New Orleans Mayor Latoya Cantrell and Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry have stated at news conferences that the Bourbon Street incident will not impact events or the city’s operations, including the upcoming Super Bowl at the NOLA Superdome. However, the New Year’s Day tragedy did postpone the Sugar Bowl between the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and the Georgia Bulldogs from January 1 to January 2.
The Louisiana Attorney General, Liz Murrill, has started a "comprehensive review" of the incident and security in the French Quarter and on Bourbon Street. Additionally, Gov. Landry declared a state of emergency to direct resources toward securing the area before the Super Bowl.
What can victims of the New Orleans tragedy do?
Talk with healthcare and mental wellness providers
The City of New Orleans recommends the following resources for individuals and families impacted by the Bourbon Street tragedy:
For general support, mental health, and trauma recovery assistance:
For children’s mental health and trauma recovery assistance:
Contact a personal injury firm
Plaintiff’s attorneys can help an individual or family impacted by the New Orleans incident seek justice through a civil lawsuit. Law firms like Romanucci & Blandin and our co-counsel Maples & Connick can help you navigate the complexity of the legal process that results from injury or death due to the Bourbon Street vehicle incident.
The attorneys at Romanucci & Blandin and Maples & Connick know how to navigate these complex cases, bring justice to victims and sometimes settle these cases without going to trial.
With headquarters in Chicago and New Orleans, Romanucci & Blandin and Maples & Connick approach cases like these as a way to provide monetary compensation and hold culpable a person or institution financially accountable and responsible for the economic, physical and emotional damages that have occurred to a large group of individuals or families.
Our law firms have a team of attorneys and staff with years of experience. Our team includes partners who guide the process and share their deep knowledge of these lawsuits. Each client and each situation is different, and your claim is treated with great care and respect as the team investigates what happened and determines the best path to justice for you.
At Romanucci & Blandin and Maples & Connick, our lawyers research the most up-to-date regulatory changes, state laws and federal laws and hire trained and experienced experts to work as expert witnesses and consultants on your cases. We will evaluate your injury and claim and research the statute of limitations applicable to your case. We work to locate and utilize the best expert witnesses across the country who are experienced in all the relevant state laws.
Talk with our Team
The personal injury attorneys at Romanucci & Blandin and Maples & Connick have proven success in these types of cases. If you or a loved one has suffered injury or wrongful death, please contact our office at 312-458-1000, email our Intake Team at intakes@rblaw.net or click here for a free case evaluation. There is never a fee until you are compensated for your injuries at the end of the case.
Disclaimer: The content found on this page is not legal assistance and contacting the mass tort lawyers at Romanucci & Blandin’s law office for a free consultation regarding personal injury cases and claims does not constitute an attorney-client relationship.
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