A Georgia widow has filed a federal lawsuit against a body armor manufacturer, alleging that the vest her police officer husband wore failed to stop bullets from piercing his back and killing him.
Tammy Jordan of Hampton, Georgia filed the lawsuit against the company, Armor Express, in a U.S. District court claiming a vest made by the Michigan-based company failed to save her husband’s life.
Officer Kevin Jordan, 43, of the Griffin Police Department was shot five times while intervening in a fight at a Griffin Waffle House, where he moonlighted as a security guard in 2014.
According to court documents, Armor Express has denied that the vest failed to meet standards. Attorney John Dixon wrote that the company has neither seen the vest, nor has it been given specific information about the way it was worn or exactly where Jordan was shot. He and the company were not available for comment Tuesday.
In her claim, the widow declared “the vest specifically physically covered” the areas of Officer Jordan’s back, where he was shot. It was designed to protect the officer “from bullet wounds or being shot by a .40-caliber handgun in his upper, middle and low back areas,” Tammy said.
According to its website, Armor Express, which is also known as Central Lake Armor Express, has contracted with several U.S. and international police forces, including the U.S. Army, Air Force and Navy.
The company highlights examples where body armor saved officers from injury and death on its website. It specifically cites the April 2015 shooting of a sheriff’s deputy in Lockport, New York, and a shooting of a deputy in Lawrence County, Illinois.
Tammy Jordan filed the lawsuit on behalf of herself and the seven children she had with Officer Jordan. Originally filed in a Spalding County court, the suit was transferred to Georgia’s northern district of federal courts.
While working his side job as a security guard at the Waffle House on May 31, 2014, Jordan tried to detain a man who was fighting with customers. He was allegedly shot by Michael Dwayne Bowman, who was later indicted on charges of murder and aggravated assault of a police officer, among others.
