Family hopes to make Nashville bars safer after son died following altercation with security
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) – A mourning family is on a mission to make bars in Music City safer after their son died following an altercation with a Nashville security guard.
A night out with friends at Tin Roof in Nashville came to a deadly end for Austin Turner last month.
“We are doing all of this for him,” Meagan Turner, Austin’s stepmother, said.
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For the last month, the Turner family has focused their heartache on action.
“It feels deeper and longer than that already,” Meagan explained.
On night of Feb. 17, Austin was at the Demonbreun Street bar with friends. Shortly after midnight, a licensed Tin Roof security guard allegedly struck him multiple times, leaving injuries that ultimately resulted in Austin’s death.
“It’s completely reshaped our lives,” Meagan sighed.
The Turners said their son’s death could have been prevented, proposing to expand and enhance Dallas’s Law. Passed in 2023, the law enhanced training requirements for security guards following the death of Dallas “DJ” Barrett at a Broadway rooftop bar.
“A lot of this could have been prevented and that is our main goal, is just prevention,” Meagan said.
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The Turners have sent a list of “Reforms for Austin” to legislators hoping to make Music City bars safer. Among their ideas in the proposal are holding establishments more accountable, pushing for more training not only for security guards, but all staff members, and requiring security surveillance cameras that are operational at the establishment. The Turners said that’s something they didn’t have from the bar for Austin’s case.
“Nobody seems to know what happened and that’s kind of mind blowing that, in a busy establishment like that, the only persons who know what happened are Austin and the security guard, and then the two witnesses outside who just caught the tail end of things. We are still trying to figure out what happened and had there been perhaps a communication plan in effect where the security guard perhaps communicates with another staff member that they we are needing to get this person out of the establishment and so forth, whatever it may be. You know, we may have more answers right now and it may have also been handled completely differently, obviously, if there were more people involved in that process,” said Meagan.
The family has created a tip line hoping to get more information as to what unfolded that night.
“What we are looking for is a number of things, not just if you witnessed it, but also if anybody has any previous interaction with Richard Cornelius, anybody who has also experienced any kind of heavy handedness while at Tin Roof in Nashville, we are seeking that information as well,” the family explained.
Anyone with information can call 1-888-445-0441 or email AustinTurnerTips@gmail.com and you can remain anonymous.
Meagan said she hopes their efforts pay off to make establishments safer.
“We’ve had a number of events in Nashville that are eerily similar,” Meagan said, pointing to other cases where a night out in Nashville ended deadly. “Doing this for Austin and for Riley and for Dallas, for anybody who has experienced anything similar, it’s very important because nobody should have to go through this.”
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The security guard in Austin’s case faces an aggravated assault charge.
The Turner’s plan to have a silent protest outside of the bar in the coming weeks, another way they hope to raise awareness on the issue.
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