The parents of a murdered Northwestern State University football player have filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the school and others.
Ronnie Caldwell Jr. was killed October 12 at the Quad Apartment Complex near the college campus in Natchitoches.
Ronald Caldwell Sr. and Blanche Bradley on behalf of Ronald LaWayne Caldwell Jr. filed their lawsuit November 4 in federal court against the State of Louisiana through the Board of Supervisors of Northwestern State University and former football coach Brad Laird. Campus Advantage Inc. and a yet-named insurance company also are named as defendants.
Campus Advantage owns and operates the Quad Apartment Complex where Caldwell was killed October 12, and the unknown insurer is the company that issued a general liability policy to Campus Advantage.
Laird resigned as coach of the Demons football program last month when the school announced it had canceled the remainder of the football season.
According to the complaint, Caldwell lived off campus at the Quad Apartment Complex with a teammate as his roommate. But when mold was discovered in the apartment, they were relocated to another apartment at the complex. Their new roommate was not a college student.
“Ronnie and his new roommate were not a good match,” the complaint states. “During their short time period living together, they had a series of verbal altercations. On October 9, 2023, Ronnie’s new roommate pulled a gun on him during an altercation.”
Ronnie called his father about the incident, and his father sent a text to Laird alerting him about the incident and that “he needed help.”
Laird replied with a phone call assuring the father “he would take expedient action and move Ronnie to a safe location immediately.”
“Three days later, Ronald received his next call from Coach Laird at 2:07 a.m. informing him that Ronnie had been murdered,” the complaint states.
On October 13, Natchitoches Police arrested that roommate, 27-year-old John McIntosh, for possession of a firearm in the presence of a controlled dangerous substance. No one has been charged in Caldwell’s shooting yet, but media reports say McIntosh was arrested nine years ago for attempted second-degree murder.
The lawsuit says Campus Advantage “had a duty to warn or to make safe any hidden dangers and a duty not to cause injury through gross negligence by tolerating frequent violent criminal activity.” It also says the complex didn’t provide reasonable security measures to prevent crime from occurring, noting the “entry gate was broken and not monitored, and there were no security guards on the premises.”
It also accuses each defendant of survival and wrongful death negligence, and it accuses the state of vicarious liability on behalf of Laird.
The parents seek compensatory and punitive damages as well as interests, court costs and other relief. They are being represented by Helen Daniel and Kathryn Williams of Daniel Williams & Associates in Houston and by Jonathan Cox and Troy Pradia of the Cox Pradia Law Firm in Houston.
U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana case number 1:23-cv-1575