Preston Lord's parents file wrongful death lawsuit: Here's what to know
PHOENIX - The parents of Preston Lord filed a lawsuit against the teens charged in his murder, as well as some of their parents, and the owners of the home where the party was held.
Lord, 16, died last year following an attack outside an Oct. 28 Halloween party in Queen Creek. He died two days later.
His death sparked outrage and awareness of pervasive teen violence in the east Valley.
Seven people, including teens and young adults, are charged with murder. Now, Lord's parents are pursuing accountability on the civil side.
A complaint filed by Lord’s parents on July 10 is shining light on new details surrounding his murder.
The wrongful death lawsuit accuses multiple defendants of several violent acts, including battery and negligence.
The complaint describes the Queen Creek house party where Lord was that evening, stating it was advertised extensively on social media as a "Halloween ranger" providing alcohol and that over 200 teens from over 15 east Valley high schools were in attendance.
The complaint says the homeowners, Roberto and Emily Correa, drank inside the home and did not supervise the teens drinking and partying outside.
After a scuffle, the complaint says Roberto ordered everyone to leave.
FOX 10 tried to reach the Correa family for comment at the address listed on the complaint but did not receive a response.
The document also accuses Travis and Rebecca Renner, parents of Talan Renner who is charged in Lord's death, of failing to supervise their son.
The complaint says his parents knew or should have known about his violent propensities, citing incidents including a threat to "shoot up" his school when in 5th grade, and seriously injuring a fellow resident at a Utah boarding school and treatment center.
"A lot of people named in this lawsuit were not named in the criminal case, so that’s why they are being named in the civil case. You want to make sure all aspects are covered for justice to be served," said attorney Ben Taylor, who does not represent defendants in the Lord case.
It's something that could take a long time to sort out, he says.
"A lot of people might see on TV that a lawsuit takes 30 minutes or an hour, but in real life, lawsuits take 2–3 years or even more before something like this gets resolved," he explained.
FOX 10 reached out to all of those listed in the complaint.
Treston Billey’s attorney said he maintains his client’s innocence and questions the lawsuit’s motivation, stating, "Obviously this is a civil manner, which carries a lesser burden of proof. My client has asserted his innocence in the criminal manner and we are aggressively pursuing his defense in the criminal manner. On a side note, I question the motivation of such a lawsuit, because most civil lawyers would recognize any substantial judgment would likely end up in bankruptcy for these young men. With that said, we will closely monitor the civil manner because it could prove invaluable to our discovery efforts."
The suspects charged in Lord's death are Talyn Vigil, Taylor Sherman, Treston Billey, William Hines, Jacob Meisner, Talan Renner and Dominic Turner.