Dead rapper's estate is being sued over shooting

BBC News:

The estate of a dead rapper is being sued for wrongful death by the family of another man who was killed in a gun battle at a Detroit nightclub.

Police say Proof - a member of Eminem's rap group D12 - shot Keith Bender before being murdered himself.

Mr Bender's wife Jacqueline and mother Leona have taken legal action over the incident on 11 April.

They claim Proof "violently assaulted and battered" Mr Bender, culminating in the gunshot that killed him.

Mr Bender, a 35-year-old army veteran, died in hospital a week after being shot. His funeral took place in Detroit on Thursday.

Proof, real name Deshaun Holton, was one of Eminem's closest friends and was best man at the superstar's wedding in January.

Eminem was among those who paid tribute to Proof at his funeral, describing him as "a people magnet", while others called for an end to violence.

But Michael Cafferty, a lawyer for Mr Bender's family, said: "It is shameful that Mr Holton is being lauded as a hero and martyr.

"In fact, it was his own criminalistic conduct that not only led to his death, but took the life of an honourable, innocent man."

Mr Bender's cousin, Mario Etheridge, who helped with security at the club, was charged with carrying a concealed weapon and discharging a firearm in a building after the incident.

Report shows Proof was drunk when argument broke out