The family of Keith
Bender Jr. filed a lawsuit today (Aug. 22) in Wayne County Circuit County against
the estate of rapper Proof. The
lawsuit, which seeks an undisclosed amount, is seeking damages for a fatal shootout
at the CCC Club on Eight Mile Road on April 11. The
lawsuit alleges Proof was responsible for escalating a fist fight, when the rapper
pulled a gun on Bender and shot him. As
Proof stood over Bender preparing to fire again, a bouncer at the club named Mario
Etheridge – who was also Bender’s cousin – open-fire on Proof, who died from multiple
gunshot wounds later in the evening.Prosecutors
announced they would not press murder charges against Etheridge in May, when prosecutor
Kym Worthy said Etheridge acted lawfully in defending Bender, who died almost
a week after being shot."The
evidence clearly shows that Mario Etheridge acted in lawful self-defense of another
when he shot DeShaun Holton," Worthy said "Once the gunshots started,
everything happened fairly quickly." The
Detroit Free Press
reports that Bender, a Desert Storm veteran, was celebratingnews that he had overcome a serious illness when he was shot.