Crime & Safety
Lawsuit Seeks Damages After Fairfax Police Shooting
A Fairfax County police officer fatally shot David Masters at the intersection of Fort Hunt Road and Richmond Highway during a 2009 traffic stop.
The brother-in-law of a Fredericksburg man fatally shot by a Fairfax County police officer in November 2009 has filed a wrongful death suit against the officer involved and county on claims of negligence.
David Masters, 52, was unarmed when he was shot by officer David Scott Ziants during a traffic stop on Richmond Highway near the intersection of Fort Hunt Road. Jon Shields, the brohter-in-law who is also a Manassas attorney, filed the action in Prince William County Circuit Court this month, just in time to qualify for consideration under the state’s two-year statute of limitations.
Shields named as plaintiffs in the lawsuit Masters’ ex-wife, Gail Masters, and stepdaughter Courtney Hubbard, who were David Masters’ heirs and administrators of his estate. However, Gail Masters and Courtney Hubbard, who could not be immediately reached for comment, previously told the Washington Post that they never consented to bringing the lawsuit.
Virginia law holds that only the administrators of an estate can file a wrongful-death lawsuit. Shields is married to David Masters’ sister, Joyce Shields.
Shields declined in an interview Wednesday to discuss his communication with Gail Masters and Courtney Hubbard relating to the lawsuit but said there was good cause to bring the legal action.
“The motivation is to bring some justice for this senseless killing,” he said.
The lawsuit claims that Ziants shot twice into David Masters’ vehicle without provocation, striking him once and killing him. Jon Shields is suing not only Ziants but also Fairfax County, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, the county police department and Police Chief David Rohrer.
The lawsuit is seeking compensatory damages of $12 million and punitive damages of $350,000 on claims of wrongful death, assault and battery.
Fairfax County Police Chief David Rohrer also apologized to David Masters’ family.
A spokeswoman for the Fairfax County Attorney’s Office has previously said the office does not comment on pending litigation.
