The family of Amanda Ross, who was slain Sept. 11 outside her Lexington town house, filed a wrongful death lawsuit on Monday against her accused killer and former fiancè, former state Rep. Steve Nunn.
The suit, which was filed in Fayette Circuit Court, alleges that Nunn stalked and threatened Ross for months leading up to Sept. 11, when Nunn "fired multiple shots at Ross, brutally murdering her."
Nunn, who has been held in the Fayette County Detention Center since Sept. 17, has pleaded not guilty to murder charges. His case has been sent to a grand jury in Fayette County.
"It's obviously a situation that needs to be addressed in the criminal courts but also in the civil court," said R. Burl McCoy. a lawyer with Stoll Keenon Ogden in Lexington, who filed the suit on behalf of the Ross family.
Nunn's attorney, Astrida L. Lemkins, said she wasn't aware of the lawsuit and couldn't comment on it.
The suit also accuses Nunn of assault and battery stemming from two fights Nunn and Ross had in February. Ross, 29, received a Domestic Violence Order against Nunn, 56, on March 4 after Nunn admitted to slapping Ross.
The suit alleges that after the fights, Nunn "engaged in a pattern of conduct directed toward Ross" that intimidated her, causing her "severe emotional distress, mental and emotional suffering" and anguish.
"Nunn threatened Ross, both implicitly and explicitly, with death and/or serious physical injury," the suit says.
The Ross family, which has asked for a jury trial, is seeking damages for pain and suffering, medical expenses, Ross's funeral costs and the loss of her future earning capacity, as well as punitive damages.
The suit does not include a dollar figure. A jury must determine that amount, according to Kentucky statutes.