TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Attorneys for the family of one of the two men killed during the mass shooting at Florida State University earlier this month held a news conference on Wednesday morning outside the student union.
Renowned national civil rights attorney Bakari Sellers, Jim Bannister and J Robert Bell III spoke on behalf of the family of Tiru Chabba, the 45-year-old father and executive for food service vendor Aramark, who was killed on campus on April 17.
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“The reason we’re here today is because the Chabba family just wants individuals to know their heartfelt sense of gratitude, but also we’re asking for a thorough and transparent investigation. We believe that’s necessary for healing,” Sellers said.
Chabba’s attorneys said he lived in Greenville, South Carolina, and was at FSU for a work trip for Aramark when the shooting happened.
Press play below to watch the news conference
Sellers said Chabba was laid to rest last week, and the family wants answers as they continue to grieve.
“The only conversations that our family has had with law enforcement were when they were notified of his death, and so we’re asking that there be some level of transparency. We’re asking that there be thoroughness so we can find out the what, the when, the why and the how this occurred,” Sellers said.
Phoenix Ikner, the 20-year-old son of a Leon County Sheriff’s Office deputy, was arrested and accused of opening fire near the student union shortly before noon.
Chabba and Robert Morales, a university dining coordinator, were killed during the shooting. Six other people were injured.
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Sellers said it is important to understand the shooter’s background, his interactions with law enforcement and who he was.
“The family and many of us have been kind of left in the dark in terms of what’s happening,” Sellers said.
The attorneys said the Chabba family said this isn’t about politics. It’s about accountability—and making sure this never happens again.
“The Chabba family has realized that there’s a mourning period that will really never end. They will never get over missing here. He won’t be there to see his children graduate from high school. He won’t be there to see them marry, to have his grandchildren,” Bannister said.
