On June 9, 2012, Desmonte Leonard allegedly opened fire in the University Heights apartment complex, currently known as Tiger Lodge. Leonard, 24, was arrested and charged with one count of capital murder, two counts of attempted murder, two counts of second-degree assault and one count of first-degree assault.
Ladarious Phillips and Ed Christian, both former Auburn University football players, as well as DeMario Pitts of Opelika, were killed in the shooting. John Robertson of Roanoke, Xavier Moss of Roanoke and former Auburn football player Eric Mack were injured as well.
Jemecia Phillips, mother of Ladarious, has filed a civil lawsuit against Leonard, according to the Lee County Circuit Court.
Xavier Moss \0x200Bhas filed a civil lawsuit as well, according to the Montgomery County Circuit Court.
The families have also filed lawsuits against University Heights and its previous management team.
In The Plainsman's article titled, "Alleged University Heights shooter sued two years later" that was posted online July 7, Phillips' family's lawyer, Randy Ferguson, placed part of the blame on the malfunctioning gates at then University Heights.
"People sent their kids to a gated community expecting to be safe, and the gates were broken half of the time. If you go out there today, the gates are still wide open," Ferguson said.
Tiger Lodge's management team, Asset Campus Housing, and current owner Robert Tulloch, disputed Ferguson's statement that the gates at Tiger Lodge remain open and are broken.
"(The gates) are 100 percent operational," Tulloch said.
Asset Campus Housing purchased University Heights in February 2013 and has replaced the motors in the gates and updated how the gates open and close. The system, according to Tulloch, is more modernized and efficient at letting people into the complex.
Tulloch said the gates are only as good as the maintenance put into them. The gates functioned approximately 99 percent when University Heights was bought, according to Tulloch. Since then, management has corrected that.
Tiara Tuck, a three-year resident of Tiger Lodge, said the gate at the back of the complex has not worked since her first year at Tiger Lodge. Residents have to come to the front two gates to enter and exit the complex.
"To my knowledge, I don't think the back gates were ever functional," Tulloch said. They certainly were not when we were looking at the property."
Tulloch said the back gate is not Tiger Lodge's main point of entry and has never been. He called it an "emergency gate" and said it would be opened up if Asset Campus Housing changed the layout of the property.
"We want people coming in through the front gate... the back gates are just closed. Period," Tulloch said.
Ebony Sullivan, senior in environmental science, has lived at Tiger Lodge for a year does not recommend moving to the complex.
"(The gates) are more of a headache than an actual luxury," Sullivan said. "Don't move here."
Tuck said if she is driving behind someone entering the gate and does not have her clicker for the gate, she can trail in behind the person in front of her.
Tulloch said he is unsure to the extent trailing occurs, but asked residents to help out when they drive through the gates by waiting until the gate closes behind them to continue driving.
"I wouldn't say a gate on any property can keep people safe. I think that's a stretch," Tulloch said. "I think a gate performs as well as a gate performs."
He also said his heart goes out to the families involved in the Leonard shooting and asked residents to be mindful of their community and keep a watch out for their neighbors.
Do you like this story? The Plainsman doesn't accept money from tuition or student fees, and we don't charge a subscription fee. But you can donate to support The Plainsman.
