The city of Tacoma will pay a Federal Way business owner $14.9 million following a road rage shooting by a man who police returned a gun to — despite his inability to possess it legally due to his age.
Jay Barbour, owner of Mediterranean Gyro Grill at 34024 Hoyt Rd. SW, was awarded $14.9 million in a settlement by the Tacoma City Council on Dec. 18, according to attorney Mark Lindquist. Lindquist said he filed a tort claim against Tacoma following the 2022 road rage incident that left Barbour paralyzed.
Lindquist said in the claim that on June 23, 2022, Barbour was driving slowly to his restaurant because he was hauling supplies. Then, Mason Taylor, who was driving behind Barbour, pulled alongside him.
The claim said that Taylor and his passenger were angry at Barbour’s pace, exchanged some words with Barbour, and then, as Barbour pulled away, Taylor shot at Barbour twice, causing one bullet to go through Barbour’s spine and paralyze him.
The claim said that evidence, including ballistics, indicates that Taylor used the same handgun to shoot a victim on June 18, 2022, though Tacoma Police officers recovered the gun from this prior shooting and interviewed Taylor. In that interview, Taylor said the gun belonged to his brother.
The claim said that when officers asked where his brother was, Taylor said he didn’t know, and he would have to call him. The claim said that after speaking with his supervising sergeant at the scene, the officer returned the gun to Taylor.
The claim said that the officer placed the gun on the curb and left it there so Taylor or his brother could pick it up after the officers departed. The claim said that at the time of the shootings, Taylor was 20 years old, so he could not legally possess a handgun, and further, Taylor was being investigated for a shooting. Lindquist said in the claim that officers acted unreasonably, negligently and dangerously when they left the handgun on a curb.
“Jay and his family, like all the victims I’ve represented in cases of death or serious injury, would give all the money back in exchange for returning to life before the harm happened,” Lindquist said in an email to The Mirror. “The justice system can’t turn back the hands of time, of course. Instead, the best the justice system can do is accountability, justice and compensation.”
Lindquist said that as a former elected Pierce County prosecutor, he was impressed with the thoroughness and integrity of the investigation that resulted in the officer’s termination.
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