Security guard accused of stabbing resident at West Side homeless shelter, civil suit claims
Albuquerque NM June 9, 2023
A man who alleges he was stabbed and seriously injured by a security guard at a homeless shelter in 2021 has filed a lawsuit alleging negligence by Albuquerque and a city contractor.
Jason Cannon alleges he was staying at the city’s Westside Emergency Housing Center when he was stabbed three times by a contractor employee, according to a lawsuit filed in 2nd Judicial District Court.
The wounds punctured Cannon’s lung, requiring emergency surgery at University of New Mexico Hospital and 57 staples to repair, the suit alleges. Cannon contends he was unarmed at the time of the June 20, 2021, attack.
The suit was filed against the city, the security guard, and nonprofit Heading Home, a city contractor that employed the security guard, according to the suit.
Albuquerque spokeswoman Katherine Simon said the guard no longer works for Heading Home. She also said the city could not comment on pending litigation.
The Westside Emergency Housing Center is the state’s largest provider of emergency shelter and routinely provides housing for more than 450 people on the coldest nights, Simon said.
Sometime before the stabbing, the security guard “caused a confrontation between himself and Mr. Cannon,” then brandished a knife and threatened Cannon, the suit alleges.
Cannon reported the encounter to a supervisor “who did not believe him” and accused him of lying about the guard having a weapon.
The guard later confronted Lopez and stabbed him twice in the back and once in the leg, the suit said. The guard also pepper sprayed Cannon in the face, it said.
Cannon “continues to suffer from his injuries and does not feel safe at a living center,” the suit said.
The suit seeks unspecified damages, alleging the city and Heading Home officials were negligent for failing to properly train the guard and to enforce policies and safeguards that protect shelter residents from dangerous weapons.
abqjournal.com
