Family seeks justice, pushes for juvenile to be tried as an adult after fatal Dallas shooting

The family of a man who was fatally shot in a Costco parking lot in northeast Dallas last year gathered Tuesday to push for the 16-year-old boy who police say pulled the trigger to be tried as an adult. In front of the Henry Wade Juvenile Justice Center in West Dallas, Mary Elbanna joined her four siblings, their mother and a few dozen others to call for justice for her father, 60-year-old Ali Elbanna. Elbanna was shot Nov. 16 after two men, a woman and the 16-year-old robbed him, according to police. The Dallas Morning News is not naming the boy due to his age. His adult certification hearing, previously set for Tuesday, was rescheduled for July 8. Mary Elbanna described her father as a private man, which is why the family initially declined to speak to reporters following the shooting.

However, after learning about the “wide range of potential punishments” for those involved, some she considered a “slap on the wrist,” she said her family decided their case needed more attention — and community support. “When decisions are being made under a cloak of darkness, no one fears being held responsible when it ends up going in the wrong direction,” said Elbanna, who was formerly Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson’s chief of staff. Ali Elbanna, who was born in Lebanon to Palestinian refugees, lived in Dallas-Fort Worth for more than 30 years. His youngest daughter, Stephanie Elbanna, said he began working his way out of poverty as a child, selling and buying merchandise on the streets, before achieving his dream of owning his own business — a small wholesale shop in Arlington.