Family sues Taco Bell, KFC over security measures after employees fail to call 911 in murder-suicide

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) -- Tali'Ja Campbell says she was the one who performed CPR on her bloodied husband; her 40-minute drive still got her to the scene of his shooting faster than Colorado Springs police officers. Police didn't arrive until an hour after she made an initial call to 911.

A new lawsuit is alleging CSPD wasn't the only party that failed her husband, Qualin Campbell. Despite the fact that four gunshots rang out of a Taco Bell parking lot, attorneys allege that employees never called 911.

On June 2, 2023, Campbell went to the neighboring KFC, located at 1501 South Nevada Ave., for lunch. It's believed that just minutes later, a homeless man got into his car, which was parked near the KFC. At some point, Campbell drove his car to the Taco Bell next door and parked in front of the building, lawyers say.

Mere minutes after he first arrived for lunch, Campbell texted his wife that a man had gotten into his car, and asked her to call 911. Mr. Campbell called 911 at 1:08 p.m., and his wife called 911 at 1:15 p.m., lawyers say.

It is believed that the man, identified as David Emmanuel Karels, was able to grab Campbell's gun. He allegedly fired three shots at Campbell and fired one self-inflicted shot to his own head.

"In spite of the four loud gunshots, no employees, personnel, or security guards from Taco Bell came to Mr. Campbell's assistance," reads the lawsuit filed by Campbell's family.

Lawyers representing the family say the area was known for crime. According to the lawsuit, police had been called to the area of the Taco Bell and KFC roughly 100 times between March 2022 and September 2024.

The lawsuit alleges that the restaurants were careless and negligent by:

• Failing to have security guards/officers on their premises during operating hours.
• Failing to have an adequate amount of security guards/officers on their premises during operating hours.
• Failing to hire and/or retain competent security guards/officers to protect employees and invitees
• Failing to take reasonable measures that would guard against and otherwise deter the conduct of criminal activity on their premises.
• Failing to inspect and/or evaluate their premises for dangerous conditions and security deficiencies

KRDO13 reached out to Taco Bell and KFC corporate for a statement. This article will be updated if we hear back.

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