In a profile published this morning, Skip Hollandsworth of Texas Monthly tells the story of Sabika Aziz Sheikh — a high school student from Karachi, Pakistan, who was an exchange student in Santa Fe, Texas. She was murdered on May 18, 2018, along with seven of her classmates and two teachers in a mass shooting at Santa Fe High School. The shooter faces state and federal criminal charges.
Everytown Law represents Sabika’s family in a lawsuit against the shooter’s parents. Despite numerous warning signs and their concerns about his mental health, the shooter’s parents did not prevent him from accessing their firearms. The shooter used his parents’ firearms to carry out this mass murder. The lawsuit alleges that the parents’ negligence in storing their firearms was a proximate cause of Sabika’s death.
Hollandsworth’s article, “Sabika’s Story,” shows readers what a remarkable young woman Sabika was and how much promise her life held. The story also recounts some of the highlights of Sabika’s time in the U.S., including the prom she attended with the closest friend she had made at Santa Fe High School:
“Sabika had never been to a dance before, but she stayed on the dance floor most of the night. She giggled and rolled her eyes when a boy attempted to flirt with her. When the prom ended, [her host parents] picked the girls up in front of the hotel, and Sabika was elated. ‘I get to tell my friends in Karachi that I went to a prom,’ she said, shaking her head in disbelief.”
Everytown Law is committed to pursuing justice for Sabika’s family, and to fighting so that children are safe at school and in their communities. When gun owners responsibly store their firearms — by keeping them locked up and unloaded, with ammunition stored separately — they can save lives. When they fail to take basic precautions, as the Santa Fe shooting made clear, the consequences can be tragic.
To find out more about the work that Everytown Law does in the courts to advocate for victims and survivors of gun violence and to defend common-sense gun safety laws (like those requiring responsible storage), see our website.
