Apartment tenant sues management following alleged home invasion

HOUSTON - In response to an alleged home invasion at his Houston area apartment which left him with severe injuries, Shannon Jenkins has filed a lawsuit.

Jenkins primarily sued C.R.E.S. Management L.L.C., JTL Properties L.L.C. and C.R.E.S. Realty L.L.C. in Harris County District Court.

The litigation was transferred to the Houston Division of the Southern District of Texas on June 12.

Recent court documents explain that an unknown person broke into Jenkins's unit at the The Fountains of Westchase Apartments during the early morning hours of June 11, 2012, and "shot at him for some unknown reason."

At the time of the subject event, Jenkins was asleep in his bedroom just as "loud noises emanating from the living room" roused him.

Realizing it was someone kicking his front door and thinking they had the wrong apartment or was in need of urgent help, the plaintiff opened the door only to come "face to face with the barrel of a gun."

"As the plaintiff instinctively raised his arm to protect his face, the person welding the gun shot the plaintiff at point blank range, shattering the plaintiff's elbow," the suit says.

It further states the subsequent two shots missed the complainant, saying the purported gunman fled the scene on the assumption the former was dead.

Police were summoned to the scene, and Jenkins was transported to Memorial Hermann Southwest Hospital.

The suit faults the respondents for negligent exposure to unsafe conditions due to inadequate security.

Consequently, the plaintiff seeks nearly $1 million in damages and a jury trial.

He is represented by attorney Ryan N. Berchelmann of The Leon Law Firm, P.C. in Sugar Land.

Case No. 4:13-CV-1711