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A Nashville police officer, shot by a robbery suspect last June, is suing a valet parking company, claiming its inadequate security measures attracted criminal activity.
Detective Donovan Coble was hospitalized on June 1, 2023, after being shot by Delama Casimir near a valet parking lot on Donelson Pike operated by The Parking Spot. The company shuttles travelers to Nashville International Airport. Coble was responding to reports of a man breaking into vehicles at the lot when Casimir shot him with a pistol stolen from one of the unlocked cars.
In response, Coble and another officer returned fire, resulting in Casimir’s death from his injuries.
In his lawsuit, Coble asserts that the valet company should be held accountable for his near-fatal injuries due to negligent security practices. He alleges these practices included regularly leaving car doors unlocked, not employing security guards, and failing to maintain perimeter fences.
“Not only did the Defendant fail as stated above, TPS (The Parking Spot) allowed through their omissions for it … to become common knowledge to the nearby criminal element that TPS failed to even lock vehicle doors, thus creating an attractive environment to encourage break-ins,” the lawsuit states.
A manager at The Parking Spot declined to comment. The company has not responded in court.
Coble, along with his wife Kayla, is seeking up to $8 million in damages. Represented by Nashville lawyers David Raybin and David Weissman, the lawsuit was initially filed in Davidson County Circuit Court in May and transferred to federal court on June 12.
