Lawsuit against Scheels over teen’s suicide in Eden Prairie store allowed to proceed to trial

(The Minnesota Star Tribune) — The trial will focus on whether Scheels and its employee were negligent in giving a handgun to a 19-year-old who then ran through the Eden Prairie sporting goods store and shot himself.

A lawsuit against Scheels over its gun safety protocols is likely headed to trial in Hennepin County District Court, three years after a 19-year-old took his own life in its Eden Prairie store after being handed a firearm for sale by an employee.

Judge Karen Janisch denied a motion by Scheels to dismiss a wrongful death and negligent entrustment lawsuit that was brought by Sarah Van Bogart on behalf of her son, Jordan Lance Markie. It sets the stage for a trial that will pit one of the nation’s largest gun control advocacy groups against a popular sporting goods chain that operates throughout the Midwest.

The complexity of the case shows in the timeline of pretrial maneuvers. The parties will have until April of next year to complete discovery with a trial date set for October 2026.

In 2022, Markie biked to the Eden Prairie store and asked to see a handgun. It was handed to him by employee William Ballantyne and Markie ran through the store, loaded the handgun and used it to kill himself.

Alla Lefkowitz, the managing director of Everytown Law, said in a statement that Janisch’s decision to allow the case to move to discovery and proceed to trial is crucial for awareness about suicide in Minnesota, which she said is responsible for 73% of gun deaths in the state.

“It is well documented that putting time and space between a person in crisis and a firearm can reduce suicidal risks and save lives,” Lefkowitz said. “We hope this case raises awareness about taking extra care not to provide a person who is in crisis with a firearm.”

More information regarding the specifics of this case can be found here.