A woman who was shot during the mass shooting at an Airbnb party on Easter morning in Pittsburgh filed a lawsuit this week against the company and owners of the property where the shooting occurred.
The lawsuit, filed Wednesday in the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas, alleges negligence on the part of Airbnb and 900 North, the owners of 900 Madison Ave. in the East Allegheny neighborhood of the city.
Tyriale Neal, identified in the lawsuit only as an adult, said she was shot in the right leg, suffered a broken femur, dislocated right hip, scarring, nerve damage and emotional injuries and psychological.
According to the lawsuit, Neal attempted to flee when the gunfire began around 12:30 p.m. and while she eventually got out, she was ultimately shot.
Two teenagers were killed in the gunfire. No arrests were made and police declined to say if they had any suspects.
Police said there were at least 200 people inside the rental unit, many of whom were minors. At least one noise complaint was filed with police around 11 p.m. An agent spoke with someone who agreed to turn the music down.
The lawsuit alleges that Airbnb and 900 North should have known the potential for violence existed. Neal referred to parties at Airbnb rental properties that have previously ended in violence, including two in 2019: one in California in which five people were killed and another in Pittsburgh that left two dead.
“Airbnb was aware of parties being held regularly at properties hosted on its internet platform,” the lawsuit said. “(The owners were) aware that parties were regularly held at the property.”
The lawsuit accused Airbnb of offering rental properties without ensuring they would be supervised, secure, rented only by adults and without parties. He then blames 900 North for the same failures.
Representatives for 900 North could not immediately be reached for comment.
Ben Breit, a spokesperson for Airbnb, pointed to an earlier statement in which the company condemned the violence and noted a lifetime ban against the user who rented the Madison Avenue property.
It is still unclear who rented this property over the Easter weekend. At the end of last month, Airbnb made his ban on parties permanent for short-term rental. The company cited a 44% drop in party reports from the previous year.
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