A woman who was hurt in a violent crash outside a nightclub in Ybor City last year is suing the venue and the driver of the car, along with the city of Tampa and the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, who were responsible for the officers engaged in the deadly pursuit.
It is the second lawsuit filed in the wake of the crash that sparked renewed criticism of the way police handle pursuits, particularly in dense urban areas.
Kilani England was one of more than 20 people who were injured when Silas Sampson swerved onto the sidewalk outside Bradley’s on 7th, an LGBTQ+ nightclub, in the early hours of Nov. 8, 2025. Four people were killed.
Sampson, 23, is charged with DUI manslaughter and a litany of other crimes related to the chase and collision. Nearly three hours after the collision, investigators drew a blood sample that showed his blood alcohol level at 0.12, well above the 0.08 limit at which state law presumes impairment.
The lawsuit, filed in Hillsborough County on Wednesday, asks for damages exceeding $50,000.
On the night of the crash, England was in the outdoor patio area of Bradley’s, according to the lawsuit.
Just before 1 a.m., Sampson tore through the sidewalk at more than 90 mph after being chased by police. Sampson’s Toyota Camry hit England and pinned her against a wall, the lawsuit states.
She sustained “severe and permanent” injuries, including “fractures requiring surgical intervention, permanent impairment, disability, pain and suffering, mental anguish, loss of enjoyment of life, medical expenses, and other damages,” the lawsuit states.
Her lawyer, Daniel R. Mendez, claims Sampson was driving the car in an “erratic, reckless, aggressive, and dangerous manner.” His conduct “was more than ordinary negligence and demonstrated a reckless disregard for the life, safety, and rights of others,” the lawsuit states.
Mendez and England could not immediately be reached for comment Thursday.
The lawsuit further argues that the nightclub’s use of “retractable belt stanchion barriers” to separate the patio from traffic did not provide “meaningful protection” from the impact of a vehicle crash.
Bradley’s on 7th “owed a duty to maintain the premises in a reasonably safe condition and to protect business invitees from foreseeable dangerous conditions,” the lawsuit states.
The nightclub did not answer phone calls seeking comment Thursday.
The lawsuit also alleges the city was responsible for “the acts and omissions of its employees, agents, and law enforcement officers acting within the course and scope of their employment.”
Though Tampa Police Department’s pursuit policy prohibited the chase, the Florida Highway Patrol — which has jurisdiction on most public roads in the state — allows troopers to chase fleeing drivers for virtually any reason. The policy was loosened in 2023 after previously requiring permission from a supervisor to chase.
After an administrative review, the police department concluded in May that its officers did not ask the Highway Patrol to pursue Sampson. But the department also updated its policy to clarify that officers cannot ask other agencies to pursue in situations where Tampa police policy otherwise prohibits it.
The Tampa Police Department has acknowledged that a high-level commander gave eight radios to the Highway Patrol. But the department previously had not said whether the troopers who pursued Sampson had one. The department has since taken the radios back.
A spokesperson for the city declined to comment Thursday, citing the pending lawsuit.
England is suing the city for “failing to terminate the pursuit” and “failing to take reasonable steps to warn or protect pedestrians and members of the public in the immediate vicinity of the pursuit,” the lawsuit states.
The lawsuit lists most of the same reasons for suing the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles and its jurisdiction over the Florida Highway Patrol.
The agency did not respond to a call seeking comment late Thursday afternoon.
