D12 News

The family of the man gunned down by D12's Proof in a Detroit nightclub shooting that also claimed the life of the rapper is now suing the late hip-hop star's estate.

The mother and wife of 35-year-old Army vet Keith Bender Jr., whom police claim was pistol-whipped and then shot in the face by Proof moments before the rapper was himself fatally shot, have filed a wrongful death lawsuit.

According to the Associated Press, the lawsuit, filed Monday by Leona and Jacqueline Bender, alleges that Proof "violently assaulted and battered [Bender], culminating with the infliction of a gunshot injury that caused the death of Mr. Bender."

The suit names Proof's wife, Sharonda Holton, as the representative of the late artist's estate, but does not list specific damages.

It further claims that the rapper, born DeShaun Holton, had "violent propensities."

The suit stems from an incident that took place Apr. 11 at Detroit's C.C.C. nightclub on Eight Mile Road. Police claim a fight erupted between Bender and Proof's parties over a game of pool. According to several witnesses, the rapper borrowed a friend's gun before attacking Bender. While Bender was on the ground, Proof allegedly shot the man in the face, at which time Mario Etheridge, Bender's cousin and a nightclub security guard, fired at Proof three times, once to the head and twice to the chest.

Proof died from his injuries later the same morning, while Bender was hospitalized in critical condition before passing a week later.

Etheridge has since been charged with carrying a concealed weapon and discharging a firearm in a building, though he has not been specifically charged with the rapper's death.

Etheridge's lawyer, Randall Upshaw, said the altercation was started by Proof, who approached Bender while drunk. Toxicology tests confirmed that fact, as a rep from the Wayne County Medical Examiner's office told the Detroit News that Proof's blood-alcohol level was 0.32 at the time of the shooting, four times the state's legal limit. However, there were no other drugs, aside from nicotine, present in his system.

"It is shameful that Mr. Holton is being lauded as a hero and martyr, when, in fact, it was his own criminalistic conduct that not only led to his death, but took the life of an honorable, innocent man," Michael Cafferty, a lawyer for the Bender family, said in a statement.

However, the notion that Proof was responsible for the altercation has been dismissed by both the attorney for his family and his self-proclaimed "brother," Eminem.

"To indicate that Proof pulled the trigger is reckless and, quite frankly, it will be proved to be untrue," Proof's lawyer told the Detroit Free Press. "It's disingenuous to speak to the media to try and suggest Proof shot first.

"There's an ongoing investigation. Until all of the factual evidence has been evaluated, an opinion by the Detroit Police Department is premature."

"Right now, there's a lot of people focusing on the way he died," Eminem said at Proof's funeral. "I want to remember the way he lived...He was, and always will be, my best friend."