Kalamazoo Shooter Jason Dalton Suing Uber For $10 Million, Claims App Was ‘Controlling’ Him
Jason Dalton, the Kalamazoo shooter, is now suing Uber for, as he claims, controlling him and making him kill six people in a series of shootings. According to Detroit Free Press, Dalton has followed through on this wildly absurd claim and filed a $10 million lawsuit, insisting that the Uber app “took over his mind and body.”
Jason Dalton, 45, filed his lawsuit with U.S. Federal District Court for the Eastern District in Detroit this week, and in his complaint he noted how poorly he was treated while working as an Uber driver.
<smh> He's suing Uber for $10 million for psychological damage as a driver for Uber. He says the app makes you… https://t.co/I7cU40E3fV
— Kristin (Grandma K) & Lucy (@thehouseai) March 17, 2016
“They ripped me off, never paid me back wages or overtime. I busted my butt for them. They gave me no Christmas bonus, I wasn’t invited to any corporate parties, they made me work when I was sick and they didn’t let me spend time with my children. Uber treats their drivers like crap.”
Apparently, that isn’t all. Dalton also claims he had to pay for the repairs for his car himself, including gas, and was threatened with firing if he did not come in and work late at night.
“This company is a hostile workplace environment,” Jason continued. “I am tired of being treated by (sic) second class citizen by Uber. Uber discriminates against my mental health.”
Dalton says Uber has caused him emotional and psychological distress, citing that his wife is filing for divorce. According to Uber, he was only employed with the company for less than a month. Dalton claims that he saw the face of the devil on his mobile phone, and the app told him where and when to shoot people, according to officers from the Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety. It’s not at all surprising that Jason Dalton is currently awaiting a mental evaluation before legal proceedings continue, considering his outlandish and troubling claims. Mental illness is more than likely the cause of Dalton’s horrifying actions, though there is no official confirmation.
Jason’s wife, Carole Dalton, told investigators about the things her husband said to her on February 20, the day of the shootings. Dalton told his wife that their children would no longer be able to go to school, and that he would no longer be going to work. Judging from Carole’s statements, it seems as if Jason knew what he was going to do that day, telling her to watch the evening news that night. By doing so, Dalton claimed, everything would make sense.
Tonight at 10 and 11, the latest from @C_VanTimmeren on a lawsuit filed by accused Kalamazoo shooter Jason Dalton. https://t.co/PphNgJuS2k
— News Channel 3 WWMT-TV (@wwmtnews) March 17, 2016
Dalton was wearing a bulletproof vest during the shootings, and when he was questioned about it, he said that the app instructed him to wear it, even though he allegedly bought the vest for his son to wear. Apparently, when Jason was in full control of his body, the app was black, but as soon as it turned red, he lost control of his body and mind, and that’s when the Uber app took over.
The six victims were identified as 53-year-old Richard Smith and his 17-year-old son, Tyler, 60-year-old Mary Jo Nye, 68-year-old Barbara Hawthorn, 74-year-old Judy Brown, and 62-year-old Mary Nye. Twenty-five-year-old Tiana Carruthers was also a victim of the shooting, but survived, as did 14-year-old Abigail Kopf.
Jason Dalton is charged with six counts of open murder, two counts of assault with intent to murder, and eight counts of use of a firearm in the commission of a felony. If convicted, he will serve a mandatory life sentence. The state of Michigan does not have a death penalty. It’s also highly unlikely that he will win this $10 million lawsuit, if it is ever taken seriously.
[Photo via YouTube]
