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Father of Donovon Lynch names new legal representation in wrongful death lawsuit

The newly announced legal counsel comes one day after Wayne Lynch says he terminated former Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax, according to new court documents.

NORFOLK, Va. — A newly filed motion named Norfolk-based property rights attorney Joseph Sherman as the new legal representation for Wayne Lynch in the wrongful death lawsuit involving his son Donovon.

In 2021, a Virginia Beach Police Department officer shot and killed Donovon at the Oceanfront. He was 25 when he died.

Two weeks after the city and the Lynch estate seemingly came to a $3 million dollar settlement in the case, Lynch fired the case attorney, former Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax, and doesn't consider the settlement to be completed.

RELATED | Father of Donovon Lynch parts ways with lawyer, plans to renegotiate settlement with Virginia Beach

Both the city and estate issued a joint statement acknowledging the agreement, which was further supported by a press conference outside the Norfolk federal courthouse with both Fairfax and Lynch.

The new motion, filed Wednesday, also described the days and events that led up to the surprise announcement.

Between Dec. 20 and 23, settlement copies had been exchanged numerous times between Lynch and the estate's attorney Jeffrey Reichert, and his case attorneys, Thomas Martin and Fairfax. 

The motion said the estate and Lynch's case attorneys went back and forth with edits on the settlement, but the version ultimately sent to the city for consideration may not have been the revised version Lynch and Reichert sent to Fairfax and Martin. 

On Dec. 23, Fairfax filed a joint motion -- which 13News Now confirmed also speaks for Virginia Beach city attorneys -- alleging Reichert was "preventing" the completion of the settlement by telling Wayne not to sign the agreement. That motion called on the courts to enforce a previous Memorandum of Understanding signed by Wayne. 

It goes on to say that the estate fired Fairfax on Monday, and hired Sherman the next day.

13News Now reached out to Fairfax for comment, who responded with the following statement:

“Justin E. Fairfax and Thomas B. Martin are honored to have settled this case in 64 days. As the attorneys of record in this matter they look forward to the court’s pending decisions.”

"Money does not motivate me. My son deserves zealous advocacy in negotiating the final terms of any settlement because my family, on behalf of Donovon, cannot agree to waive the right to participate in any investigation by the Department of Justice, or any other entity, of the City and its training, culture, and hiring practices for policing," Wayne said in part in a statement to 13News Now Thursday evening.

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