The mother of a Virginia teen is suing the Virginia State Police Department along with two state troopers after her son was shot and killed during a police chase in January 2021.

Latoya Benton, the mother of 18-year-old Xzavier Hill filed her lawsuit in early April in the U.S. District Court in Richmond without legal representation. After filing her suit, she held a press conference outside the courthouse steps where friends and family came out to support her.

According to the complaint, Benton details that the two officers used excessive force and that the shooting was at least partially motivated by her son’s race. As part of her complaint, Benton is seeking $60 million against the state and damages against the two troopers totaling $350,000. She is also seeking a jury trial for her case.

During the press conference, Benton confirmed that she had written and filed the lawsuit herself because at least five attorneys turned her down. She also noted mounting legal fees from previous litigation concerning her son’s death as another reason for lack of representation.

Hill, who was a resident of Charlottesville, Virginia, was fleeing police on nearby Interstate 64, just outside of Richmond during the early hours of January 9. The chase reached speeds of 120 mph before Hill turned off his headlights and tail lights in order to throw the police off. Hill then pulled over and attempted to make a U-turn which would have resulted in him driving eastbound on a westbound lane. After police cornered him and the chase came to a stop, police troopers approached Hill’s vehicle and saw the teen flash a gun. This resulted in the officers opening fire, striking him in the neck.

As a result of the shooting, the two troopers stood before a grand jury but were cleared of any wrongdoing. In its report, the grand jury detailed, “Mr. Hill’s failure to comply with the commands of the troopers and then introduce a firearm into a rapidly evolving event provided a reasonable basis for the officers to believe they were in imminent danger of serious bodily injury or death.”

The grand jury’s report also detailed that the gun found in Hill’s possession matched the description of a gun that was stolen out of a vehicle days before the fatal high-speed chase. According to the report, Hill knew the owner of the stolen pistol, and Hill was in the vehicle of the gun’s owner around the time the firearm was stolen.

Despite the circumstances of the case, Benton contends that the troopers should be held liable for her son’s death. “I’m here to continue my calling to get justice for my son and for all the other accounts of black men and women who were denied their constitutional right of protection based solely on the fact of fear that’s triggered in white male officers. I wanna show people you can fight this fight. I don’t wanna settle just to make it go away,” Benton shared.