Today, the mother of Justin Burton filed a wrongful-death lawsuit, claiming her 30-year-old son should never have been shot and killed inside Britton Tavern in Fishers on Dec. 1, 2025. The complaint names 31-year-old Maclean Murt and Britton Tavern as defendants, alleging both played a role in the deadly encounter. The suit seeks monetary damages and asks for a jury trial in Hamilton County.
What the lawsuit alleges
According to the filing, Britton Tavern failed to enforce its own posted warnings banning weapons, continued serving patrons who were visibly intoxicated, and did not take reasonable steps to stop a foreseeable confrontation that ended in gunfire, WTHR reports. The complaint also claims the bar negligently selected and supervised its security staff and accuses Murt of “negligently and/or recklessly” firing the gun that killed Burton. The civil suit asks that both the tavern and Murt face a jury.
Surveillance footage and police account
Bar surveillance video and a Fishers Police probable-cause affidavit reviewed by Current Publishing paint a chaotic scene inside the tavern. Detectives say the suspect, described as being in a wheelchair, moved quickly toward Burton, grabbed Burton's arm, and yanked hard enough that the wheelchair flipped backward and Burton also went down. The affidavit states that Murt then raised his left arm while holding an object and, moments later, Burton collapsed. Other bar patrons removed a handgun from the scene and took it to a kitchen area before officers arrived, according to the affidavit. Investigators also noted remarks attributed to Murt about a vape pen and later recorded him telling officers he was sorry.
Death confirmed at the scene
Fishers officers were called to Britton Tavern at about 2:45 a.m. on Dec. 1, 2025, and found a man inside the bar suffering from a gunshot wound. Medics pronounced him dead at the scene. Hamilton County Coroner Jeff Jellison later identified the victim as 30-year-old Justin Burton of Noblesville, according to reporting from WRTV.
Criminal case and next dates
Prosecutors have charged Murt with murder and armed robbery in the related criminal case, and authorities say the investigation is still active. Court documents cited by WTHR list a jury trial date of Sept. 14, 2026. Murt remains in custody while pretrial hearings continue.
Legal context
The wrongful-death lawsuit is a civil action, separate from the criminal prosecution, and it will be decided under a lower burden of proof. That means the civil and criminal cases can move forward on parallel tracks. Indiana's liquor-liability rule, often called the dram-shop statute, requires proof that a server had "actual knowledge" a customer was visibly intoxicated and that the intoxication was a proximate cause of the harm. That standard, along with key case law, is outlined in state statute compilations. For a summary of the statute, see the Indiana code overview on Justia.
Bar response and what's next
Owners of Britton Tavern, identified in court filings as ST Inc., said they were "deeply saddened" by Burton's death and that they were cooperating with investigators, according to Current Publishing. The civil complaint argues that the bar did not enforce its posted ban on weapons, a claim that was not directly addressed in the owners' public statement.
The new wrongful-death case in Hamilton County Superior Court will now unfold alongside the criminal charges against Murt. For a look at how the incident first unfolded when police responded to the tavern, see earlier coverage of the fatal Fishers bar shooting and prior reporting from WRTV.
