Fon Atang Dockery Jr., Jenesis’s father, told reporters said his family has been “changed forever” by a preventable tragedy. (Photo: Brandon Kingdollar/NC Newsline)
Nearly two years after eight-year-old Jenesis Dockery died from a gunshot caused by her babysitter’s son, her family is suing to hold his family responsible for her death.
Civil rights attorneys Harry Daniels and Chimeaka White joined members of Dockery’s family and their supporters outside the Cumberland County Courthouse in Fayetteville to announce the wrongful death lawsuit Tuesday morning. The lawsuit accuses Chrystle Michael and Thomas Michael, the mother and grandfather of the 11-year-old boy who caused the gun to be fired, of negligence leading to the fatal shooting in 2023.
“Our family has been changed forever by a tragedy that was very well preventable,” said Fon Atang Dockery Jr., Jenesis Dockery’s father. “We stand here today to own up to our human responsibility, our parental responsibility, to ask for justice and transparency for the life, the light, and the legacy of Jenesis Dockery.”
He said his family has been in therapy for two years since the shooting seeking to overcome the tragedy. While he hopes a judgment in the case will lead to greater accountability for gun violence, he does not expect it to bring closure. “$100 million later, we’ve still got to go to the graveyard to see our daughter.”
As attorneys described the lawsuit, members of the community held signs reading “Justice for Jenesis,” “Light in the Darkness,” and “Change the Laws” in support of the family. At the press conference’s conclusion, they repeated her name in unison to honor her memory.
On July 25, 2023, Fon Dockery took his two daughters to Chrystle Michael’s home so she could babysit them. Her 11-year-old son, who is unnamed in the lawsuit, was also home that day and had taken his grandfather Thomas Michael’s gun from his house, according to the lawsuit.
At some point that day, the gun fired when the boy either caused it to fall or triggered it while handling it. The bullet struck Jenesis Dockery in the head, causing a traumatic brain injury that left her comatose. Two days later, she died after being taken off life support.
The lawsuit accuses Thomas Michael of failing to ensure the security of the .25 automatic pistol used in the shooting and Chrystle Michael of not adequately watching over the children while she was babysitting.
Additionally, the attorneys wrote that the Michaels should have been aware that the 11-year-old boy who obtained and caused the gun to be fired had “strong interest in firearms” and “a propensity for violence,” including toward other children. The complaint features an image of the boy holding a gun that was taken and apparently posted online prior to the shooting.
“It’s time for the law of North Carolina to put emphasis on children and make sure that the children of this state — of all parents — are safe and protected,” Daniels said. “We’ve got to hold the adults responsible and accountable for the actions of children they’re supposed to supervise.”
White said the tragedy “definitely could have been avoided” if the boy’s family had paid closer attention to his behavior and taken proper care of the weapon. “We are here today to ask for truth and transparency and to bring some justice to this family.”
According to court records, the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office served the Michaels with the lawsuit Tuesday morning. An attorney for the family was not yet listed as of Tuesday afternoon.
Daniels said at the press conference that the boy who fired the gun was found responsible for involuntary manslaughter and larceny of a firearm through the juvenile justice system. His mother and grandfather have not been charged criminally.
He credited Jenesis Dockery’s family for their resilience through such a traumatic experience and for working to put an end to similar tragedies. In 2024, they launched the Live Like Jenesis Project, dedicated to raising awareness of mental health and promoting safe gun storage. They also worked with Sen. Val Applewhite (D-Cumberland) to develop the Jenesis Firearm Accountability Act, which was introduced to the North Carolina Senate.
That bill would require gun owners to report missing or stolen firearms within 48 hours or risk criminal charges as well as civil damages for any crime committed with the weapon. It also includes a tax exemption for the purchase of gun safes and lockers meeting security standards set by the bill.
“Her light continues to go forward in the change that it is creating even now,” Fon Dockery said.