JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – For the first time since three people were killed in a racially motivated shooting in August, the doors of the Dollar General store in Grand Park reopened to customers on Friday morning, our News 6 partner WJXT in Jacksonville reported.
News4JAX reporter Marilyn Parker got a tour of the changes inside the renovated store and spoke with a Dollar General spokesperson ahead of the reopening.
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The company said it listened to feedback from employees and the community and made changes before reopening, including adding fresh produce, health and wellness products, and cameras throughout the store.
“It was important to take the necessary time to listen to and evaluate feedback from employees and the community, which informed not only the store’s upgrades but also our efforts to reopen the store in a respectful and thoughtful manner,” said Julie Martin, Dollar General divisional vice president of store operations. “We continue to provide support, counseling and outreach where needed in Jacksonville and are pleased to once again serve our Kings Road neighbors.”
It’s the first time the store was open since the Aug. 26 shooting that killed AJ LaGuerre Jr., 19, Angela Carr, 52, and Jerrald Gallion, 29. A memorial to the three victims remains outside the store.
Law enforcement officials said the shooter, identified as Ryan Palmeter, used a PA-15 firearm with a swastika painted on it and left three manifestos that expressed “a disgusting ideology of hate.” The gunman took his own life.
Not everyone is OK with the store reopening. Attorneys for the victims said it disrespects their memories.
“It minimizes the value of their lives,” said Adam Finkel, a lawyer with The Haggard Law Firm. “This is about money, what they’re doing. They’re trying to market again to say, ‘Come back into our stores and buy our items. So we can make up for the profit loss from having closed the store,’ having closed the store because the walls were covered in blood.”
Finkel said the store needs to add security guards and ensure patrons’ safety.
Read what neighbors in the community say about the store reopening, and what else Dollar General is doing in light of the shooting, by going to the latest WJXT report.