When Sabika Aziz Sheikh’s parents sent her to the United States as an exchange student from their native Pakistan in August 2017, they saw the opportunity as a step forward in her pursuit of a career in business.
They never envisioned those dreams ending at the hands of a gunman in her school, and now they want other parents to avoid the immeasurable sorrow they continue to experience.
Sheikh was one of 10 people – eight students and two teachers – killed in the May 18 shooting at Santa Fe High School outside Houston. On Wednesday, her parents – Abdul Aziz and Farah Naz – joined six other families in a lawsuit against the parents of suspected shooter Dimitrios Pagourtzis.
Sheikh, 17, was less than three weeks away from completing her exchange program and returning home to Karachi when she became one of the victims in the nation’s second-deadliest school shooting this year.
“No other parent should ever have to experience this unbearable grief,” Sheikh’s parents said in a statement. “Sabika’s picture is in front of our eyes every single moment, and her voice and laughter echo in our ears. For a mother and a father, this trauma and mourning stay until their last breath.’’
The lawsuit alleges that Antonio Pagourtzis and his wife, Rose Marie Kosmetatos, were negligent in storing the weapons their son used to carry out the massacre and ignored signs that he might harm himself or others.
Dimitrios Pagourtzis, who was then 17 and a junior at the school, has been charged with capital murder and aggravated assault on a peace officer. He admitted to the shooting spree after being arrested.
In addition to pursuing more than $1 million in damages, Aziz and Naz see the lawsuit as a way to shed light on the gun culture in the United States, their lawyer said.
“They had no knowledge of that before Sabika was killed,’’ Molly Thomas-Jensen said. “It’s part of a broader conversation that the U.S. has an anomalous problem with gun violence.’’
Thomas-Jensen works as counsel for Everytown for Gun Safety, a gun-control advocacy group that is providing part of the legal representation for the Aziz-Naz family while highlighting the issue of safe storage of firearms.
When Sabika Aziz Sheikh’s parents sent her to the United States as an exchange student from their native Pakistan in August 2017, they saw the opportunity as a step forward in her pursuit of a career in business.
They never envisioned those dreams ending at the hands of a gunman in her school, and now they want other parents to avoid the immeasurable sorrow they continue to experience.
Sheikh was one of 10 people – eight students and two teachers – killed in the May 18 shooting at Santa Fe High School outside Houston. On Wednesday, her parents – Abdul Aziz and Farah Naz – joined six other families in a lawsuit against the parents of suspected shooter Dimitrios Pagourtzis.
Sheikh, 17, was less than three weeks away from completing her exchange program and returning home to Karachi when she became one of the victims in the nation’s second-deadliest school shooting this year.
“No other parent should ever have to experience this unbearable grief,” Sheikh’s parents said in a statement. “Sabika’s picture is in front of our eyes every single moment, and her voice and laughter echo in our ears. For a mother and a father, this trauma and mourning stay until their last breath.’’
The lawsuit alleges that Antonio Pagourtzis and his wife, Rose Marie Kosmetatos, were negligent in storing the weapons their son used to carry out the massacre and ignored signs that he might harm himself or others.
Dimitrios Pagourtzis, who was then 17 and a junior at the school, has been charged with capital murder and aggravated assault on a peace officer. He admitted to the shooting spree after being arrested.
In addition to pursuing more than $1 million in damages, Aziz and Naz see the lawsuit as a way to shed light on the gun culture in the United States, their lawyer said.
“They had no knowledge of that before Sabika was killed,’’ Molly Thomas-Jensen said. “It’s part of a broader conversation that the U.S. has an anomalous problem with gun violence.’’
Thomas-Jensen works as counsel for Everytown for Gun Safety, a gun-control advocacy group that is providing part of the legal representation for the Aziz-Naz family while highlighting the issue of safe storage of firearms.
They never envisioned those dreams ending at the hands of a gunman in her school, and now they want other parents to avoid the immeasurable sorrow they continue to experience.
Sheikh was one of 10 people – eight students and two teachers – killed in the May 18 shooting at Santa Fe High School outside Houston. On Wednesday, her parents – Abdul Aziz and Farah Naz – joined six other families in a lawsuit against the parents of suspected shooter Dimitrios Pagourtzis.
Sheikh, 17, was less than three weeks away from completing her exchange program and returning home to Karachi when she became one of the victims in the nation’s second-deadliest school shooting this year.
“No other parent should ever have to experience this unbearable grief,” Sheikh’s parents said in a statement. “Sabika’s picture is in front of our eyes every single moment, and her voice and laughter echo in our ears. For a mother and a father, this trauma and mourning stay until their last breath.’’
The lawsuit alleges that Antonio Pagourtzis and his wife, Rose Marie Kosmetatos, were negligent in storing the weapons their son used to carry out the massacre and ignored signs that he might harm himself or others.
Dimitrios Pagourtzis, who was then 17 and a junior at the school, has been charged with capital murder and aggravated assault on a peace officer. He admitted to the shooting spree after being arrested.
In addition to pursuing more than $1 million in damages, Aziz and Naz see the lawsuit as a way to shed light on the gun culture in the United States, their lawyer said.
“They had no knowledge of that before Sabika was killed,’’ Molly Thomas-Jensen said. “It’s part of a broader conversation that the U.S. has an anomalous problem with gun violence.’’
Thomas-Jensen works as counsel for Everytown for Gun Safety, a gun-control advocacy group that is providing part of the legal representation for the Aziz-Naz family while highlighting the issue of safe storage of firearms.
When Sabika Aziz Sheikh’s parents sent her to the United States as an exchange student from their native Pakistan in August 2017, they saw the opportunity as a step forward in her pursuit of a career in business.
They never envisioned those dreams ending at the hands of a gunman in her school, and now they want other parents to avoid the immeasurable sorrow they continue to experience.
Sheikh was one of 10 people – eight students and two teachers – killed in the May 18 shooting at Santa Fe High School outside Houston. On Wednesday, her parents – Abdul Aziz and Farah Naz – joined six other families in a lawsuit against the parents of suspected shooter Dimitrios Pagourtzis.
Sheikh, 17, was less than three weeks away from completing her exchange program and returning home to Karachi when she became one of the victims in the nation’s second-deadliest school shooting this year.
“No other parent should ever have to experience this unbearable grief,” Sheikh’s parents said in a statement. “Sabika’s picture is in front of our eyes every single moment, and her voice and laughter echo in our ears. For a mother and a father, this trauma and mourning stay until their last breath.’’
The lawsuit alleges that Antonio Pagourtzis and his wife, Rose Marie Kosmetatos, were negligent in storing the weapons their son used to carry out the massacre and ignored signs that he might harm himself or others.
Dimitrios Pagourtzis, who was then 17 and a junior at the school, has been charged with capital murder and aggravated assault on a peace officer. He admitted to the shooting spree after being arrested.
In addition to pursuing more than $1 million in damages, Aziz and Naz see the lawsuit as a way to shed light on the gun culture in the United States, their lawyer said.
“They had no knowledge of that before Sabika was killed,’’ Molly Thomas-Jensen said. “It’s part of a broader conversation that the U.S. has an anomalous problem with gun violence.’’
Thomas-Jensen works as counsel for Everytown for Gun Safety, a gun-control advocacy group that is providing part of the legal representation for the Aziz-Naz family while highlighting the issue of safe storage of firearms.
