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Inset: Lavontez Davis (Cincinnati Police Department). Background: Cellphone video showing Lavontez Davis choking Jason McKinnon to death in Cincinnati, Ohio (WXIX).
A tragic altercation involving an Ohio DoorDash driver has led to a man confessing to the fatal choking of another individual, following a dispute over the delivery driver’s alleged navigation of a one-way street in the wrong direction. The incident has prompted a wrongful death lawsuit against DoorDash, claiming the couple involved continued to make deliveries even after leaving the scene.
According to the legal complaint filed by the widow of Jason McKinnon, the victim, the defendants, Lavontez Davis and his girlfriend Shimya Berry, were actively engaged in DoorDash deliveries at the time. Berry, employed by the San Francisco-based company, was reportedly riding as a passenger with Davis during the incident.
The complaint further alleges, “Immediately after fleeing, they picked up a DoorDash order … and delivered it.”
Lavontez Davis, age 26, has pleaded guilty to strangulation and involuntary manslaughter for the October 2023 death of McKinnon. As reported by local Fox affiliate WXIX, Davis was initially charged with murder and felonious assault, alongside the strangulation charge. He has been sentenced to 15 to 20 years in prison.
In court, Davis addressed McKinnon’s family, expressing remorse. “I know how it feels to lose people,” he said. “I wouldn’t wish that on my worst enemy. I want you all to know I’m sorry.”
The civil suit filed by McKinnon’s family names Davis, Berry, and DoorDash as being to blame for the Ohio native’s death.
“My client, Emily Livingston, as well as the family and friends of Jason McKinnon have endured a loss that is immeasurable,” said Tabitha Hochscheid, attorney for McKinnon’s widow, in a statement to WXIX. “No criminal case outcome can undo the harm done.”
Livingston’s complaint says she and McKinnon were walking back to her vehicle from an FC Cincinnati soccer match when they saw Berry “attempting to drive the wrong way on a one-way street,” the document alleges.
“Concerned for his safety and the safety of others, Jason McKinnon shouted to defendant Berry that she was driving the wrong way on a one-way street,” the complaint says. “Berry stopped her car and responded verbally. A verbal exchange ensued, during which Berry became upset and verbally abusive.”
The complaint says the argument “escalated” and Davis exited the vehicle and approached the couple. “Davis struck Jason McKinnon, and a physical altercation ensued,” the document explains. “Davis placed Jason McKinnon in a chokehold while plaintiff Livingston and bystanders begged him to stop. … Eventually, Davis released McKinnon from the chokehold, returned to the car with Berry, and fled the scene.”
The complaint accuses Davis and Berry of picking up a DoorDash order at a local CityBird restaurant and delivering it. “Berry had been driving to the restaurant to pick up that order at the time of the altercation and chose to drive the wrong way on the one-way street because it was faster,” the complaint alleges. “Berry was operating as an associate of DoorDash and driving her vehicle on its behalf.”
McKinnon died four days after the attack, WXIX reports.
“This was a horrific and devastating incident, and our thoughts are with the victim’s loved ones,” DoorDash told Law&Crime on Monday in a statement. “The suspect was not a Dasher or at all associated with the platform.”