Federal Court Orders U.S. Air Force to Pay $230 Million Over Sutherland Springs Church Massacre

On November 5, 2017, a former Air Force airman walked into the First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs, Texas, during Sunday service and opened fire. He killed 26 people and wounded 22 others in one of the deadliest mass shootings in Texas history. The shooter had a 2012 domestic assault conviction from a military court-martial for attacking his wife and stepson.

That conviction should have barred him from buying a firearm. Under federal law, the Air Force was required to report the court-martial to the FBI's National Instant Criminal Background Check System. It did not. A Department of Defense review later found the branch had failed six separate times to report information that could have kept the shooter out of a gun store. He purchased his rifle legally and legally bought more firearms in the years that followed.

Families of the dead and survivors filed suit against the United States under the Federal Tort Claims Act. The consolidated cases, captioned Holcombe et al. v. United States, were assigned to U.S. District Judge Xavier Rodriguez in San Antonio. The Law Offices of Thomas J. Henry, through attorney Hugh Plummer, joined as co-counsel representing plaintiff families. The firm was one of more than a dozen law offices that represented the roughly 80 claimants across the consolidated litigation.

In July 2021, Judge Rodriguez found the government liable, determining that the Air Force's failures were a proximate cause of the shooting. The government had argued for $31.8 million in total damages. On February 7, 2022, Judge Rodriguez issued his damages ruling, ordering the United States to pay more than $230 million. He apportioned 60 percent of liability to the government, reflecting the shooter's remaining share of culpability.

The Justice Department appealed. In April 2023, the parties announced a tentative settlement of $144.5 million, brokered in part by Washington attorney Kenneth Feinberg. The figure exceeded what the government had sought at trial but was less than the $230 million judgment. Federal Judge Rodriguez gave the settlement final court approval on May 2, 2023, resolving the claims of more than 75 victims and families.