Back in June, we introduced a wrongful death case involving a young woman who was killed by her boyfriend soon after the young man left a mental health facility.
“There was no mystery that he was going to commit an act of violence against Melissa Rodriguez,” said Brian Jorde, the attorney representing the Rodriguez family in their wrongful death lawsuit.
He is referring to what he and the family believe were obvious indicators that Melissa’s boyfriend was dangerous, including allegations that:
- The police said he was dangerous
- He had an arrest warrant
- He had committed acts of violence against her
- He admitted to wanting to kill
The lawsuit alleges that Melissa’s death could have been prevented had the proper checks and balances been in place at the Lasting Hope, the recovery center that Melissa’s boyfriend was checked into just prior to killing her. The lawsuit also names the Omaha Police Department as partially responsible for allowing the boyfriend to leave the facility even though he had been admitted under an emergency protective order.
According to Jorde, the only ways he could have been let go from Lasting Hope Recovery Center would be if someone was completely incompetent or someone evaluated him and determined he was fine to be released.
Change the law. Change the ways things are done.
Melissa Rodriguez’s parents believe the system failed their daughter, and they want justice. They turned to Brian Jorde, a trial lawyer at Domina Law Group, in hopes of not just getting justice for their daughter, but changing the way things are done so that something this horrific never happens again.
Watch the full segment as it appeared on KETV 7