Virginia Walmart mass shooting survivor files $50 million lawsuit

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NORFOLK, Va. – A Walmart employee who survived last week’s mass shooting at a store in Virginia has filed a $50 million lawsuit against the company for allegedly continuing to employ the shooter – a store supervisor – « who had known propensities for violence, threats and strange behavior. »

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The lawsuit, which appears to be the first to stem from the shooting, was filed Tuesday in Chesapeake Circuit Court by Donya Prioleau. Walmart, headquartered in Bentonville, Arkansas, did not immediately respond to a written request seeking comment on the litigation.

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Prioleau’s lawsuit alleges she suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder, including physical and emotional distress, after witnessing the rampage in the store’s break room on Nov. 22. Her lawsuit offers new details about the terrifying attack and provides a long list of troubling signs displayed by the shooter that she claims handlers failed to address.

« Bullets whizzed past plaintiff Donya Prioleau’s face and left side, narrowly missing her, » the lawsuit says. « She saw several of her colleagues being brutally murdered on either side of her. »

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The lawsuit adds: “Mrs. Prioleau looked one of his colleagues in the eye just after being shot in the neck. Ms. Prioleau saw the bullet wound in her colleague’s neck, the blood flowing from it and the look of shock on her helpless colleague’s face.

Store supervisor Andre Bing, 31, shot and killed six employees and injured several others before dying from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot, police said.

The lawsuit alleges that Bing « had a personal vendetta against several Walmart employees and maintained a ‘target list’ of potential targets prior to the shooting. »

The listing refers to a « death note » found on Bing’s phone and released Friday by authorities. The note appeared to contain specific references to people he worked with, but authorities redacted their names.

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Bing was a Walmart team leader who had worked for the company since 2010. He was responsible for managing the overnight storage team, including Prioleau, who began work in May 2021, according to the lawsuit.

The lawsuit claims that management knew or should have known of Bing’s disturbing behavior and lists several instances of alarming conduct.

“Before the shooting, Mr. Bing repeatedly asked his colleagues if they had received their active shooter training,” the lawsuit states. « When colleagues replied that they had, Mr. Bing just smiled and walked away without saying anything. »

Bing « made comments to other Walmart employees and managers suggesting he would be violent if fired or disciplined, » according to the suit, which also says Bing « was disciplined prior to the shooting, making his outburst predictable violence ».

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In another instance, Bing told colleagues « he ran over a turtle with a lawnmower just to see his (guts) spray, which made him hungry and reminded him of ramen noodles, » the report says. court case.

Bing was previously disciplined for employee misconduct and harassment, but Walmart « still continued to employ him, » the lawsuit says.

In her court filing, Prioleau states that she and her mother attempted to sue Bing.

Prioleau had filed a formal complaint on a Walmart Global Ethics Statement Form stating that Bing had « made bizarre and inappropriate comments about Ms. Prioleau’s age, » the lawsuit said.

The lawsuit alleges that Bing told him, « Isn’t your clock running? » Shouldn’t you have children?

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Prioleau also complained that Bing harassed her for « being poor and small, » according to the lawsuit.

The lawsuit says she also informed Walmart that Bing called her a « bitch » under his breath.

In September, Prioleau’s mother raised concerns with a Walmart official about her daughter’s safety « because it appeared their concerns were falling on deaf ears, » the lawsuit says.

The manager said « there was nothing to do against Mr. Bing because he was liked by management, » according to the lawsuit.

Prior to the shooting, Bing told co-workers that « the government was watching him, » the suit reads. « He kept black tape on his phone’s camera so no one could spy on him. »

In the note left on his phone, Bing claimed he had been stalked and said he had been pushed to the brink by the perception that his phone had been hacked. The note also accused his colleagues of making fun of him.

Bing’s death note sometimes runs 11 paragraphs, with references to non-mainstream cancer treatments and songwriting. He says people have unfairly compared him to serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer.

Jessica Wilczewski, a Walmart employee who witnessed the shooting, told The Associated Press last week that Bing appeared to be targeting certain people.

« The way he was acting – he was going hunting, » she said.