NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — The Waffle House shooting continues to be on the minds of many especially those who have lost loved ones during the April 22, 2018 tragedy.
On Wednesday morning inside the Justice A. A. Birch Building, victims and their supporters packed the courtroom for a discussion hearing. The alleged shooter, Travis Reinking, had his appearance waived and was not present.
During the brief hearing, the defense attorney told the judge he has more than 600 gigabytes of data evidence that needs to be put onto a hard drive. The defense counsel would work on that this week. Judge Mark Fishburn then asked if the discovery evidence would be reviewed in its entirety before a July 17th pre-trial scheduling order.
The defense attorney said he did not believe all the evidence would.
After the hearing, Akilah DaSilva's brother, Abede, said justice to him would be "an eye for an eye." His mother, Shaundelle Brooks, who lost her son in the senseless shooting said she felt as if the case was being dragged.
"We want that penalty. [Reinking's] family gets to see him, they get to talk to him, they get to be around him. We don't get that. We have to go to the cemetery. We can talk but we don't get a response, so they need to feel what we're feeling. I feel like it's dragging out. It's been over a year now and I just feel like it's just victimizing the family all over again. We're going through this, and we're never going to stop, we're never going to give up, we're never going to forget," Brooks said.
Di'Angelo Groves, brother of DeEbony Groves, said he loves the community support he and his family has received throughout their pain. He acknowledged that some of the Waffle House employees even attended today's discussion.
"I love that...they really are a great group of people. Ever since day one, the very first vigil some of the employees from the Waffle House the actual location they actual came out. They call, they text. They show random acts of love, random acts of kindness. So I guess they are now part of our family and I guess we're part of their family," he said.
A civil jury trial in the case against Travis Reinking is expected to happen on December 9-10.
