Families of men killed in Halloween shooting to sue City of Orlando, OPD
On Oct. 31, Tyrek Hill was preparing to discuss with his mother the possibility of buying a truck to start his own towing company. Timothy Schmidt Jr. was showing a friend around Orlando, where Hill was a student at the University of Central Florida.
That night, both men decided to hit downtown for its annual Halloween block party. Neither made it out alive after being gunned down by 17-year-old Jaylen Edgar, who inexplicably was carrying a weapon as he strolled among the partygoers.
Now, the families of both men are suing, accusing the city and the Orlando Police Department of wrongful death by failing to provide adequate security. On Tuesday, two of their parents — Timothy Schmidt Sr. and Teresa Clinton, Hill's mother — met in person for the first time to announce the lawsuit, joined by attorneys Michael Haggard and Douglas McCarron.
'We're in an awful club that you don't want to be in,' Schmidt Sr. said. Hill added, 'Our sons left here somewhat the same. … We're trauma-bonded.'
Several businesses that make up the city's Entertainment District are also set to be named in the lawsuit, but the attorneys declined to name them. Haggard said the city and OPD have been notified of the coming lawsuit, which is expected to be filed later this month.
This month also marks the ninth anniversary of the Pulse Nightclub shooting, which resulted in the deaths of 49 people before the shooter was killed by law enforcement.
'Everybody in the community should be asking: has anything changed?' Haggard said. 'Has anything changed in society? Has anything changed in how businesses deal with this, the government deals with this, or anything along those lines?'
About 75,000 people were partying downtown Halloween night when gunfire erupted on two separate occasions. The first happened on the corner of North Orange Avenue and Central Boulevard, where city surveillance video showed Edgar shot Hill in the head from close range while walking past him. He then shot Schmidt Jr. shortly after, striking him in the heart in front of Sly Fox Bar following an altercation in which Schmidt Jr. wasn't involved.
Edgar, who turns 18 in September, was arrested as he tried to flee amid a panicked, scattering crowd. He was charged as an adult on two counts of first-degree murder and seven counts of attempted murder, with his next court appearance expected to take place Aug. 25.
While a City of Orlando spokesperson declined to comment on the pending litigation, officials at the time of the shooting pointed to a state law allowing gun owners to carry in public places without a permit. They said that prevented the city from conducting its own weapons checks in the downtown area, as it had previously.
Still, Haggard said, city authorities should have been prepared for that. In 2024 there were about 500 mass shootings throughout the U.S. including 32 in Florida, according to the Gun Violence Archive, which tracks shootings nationwide.
This year, six of the 133 mass shootings so far were in the state.
'Our laws in the State of Florida are awful regarding gun safety, there's no question about that,' Haggard said. 'But the City of Orlando knows that, the police department knows that, the entertainment district knows that. … So businesses have to step up in the environment they're in.'
As for the families, they intend to carry on their sons' legacies. Since the shooting, Schmidt Sr. founded a nonprofit seeking to help others in similar situations. Clinton, Hill's mother, seeks to do the same.
While they both seek justice for their children's deaths, Schmidt Sr. and Hill say they share a common aim: reform.
'We can point the blame at anybody, but who will step up and make a change?' Hill said. 'Let's make a difference. It doesn't have to just be us, it can be all — or is it just another person dead in the streets and another suspect in jail?'
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