NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — The family of a Mississippi woman who was killed after her ex-boyfriend was released on bond from Nashville has filed a $150 million lawsuit against the bail bonding companies that released him.

Lauren Johansen, 22, was found murdered in Mississippi days after her ex-boyfriend was released from the Metro jail. The lawsuit claims those responsible for his release let him go without him paying his full bond premium and ignored their obligation to the court to keep Johansen safe.

Johansen was a college student at University of Southern Mississippi, working toward her degree as a registered nurse, when she visited Nashville with her then-boyfriend Bricen John Rivers in December 2023.

Click here read the lawsuit.

According to Metro police, Rivers began hitting Johansen as he was driving and took her phone after they left a downtown bar. He eventually stopped the car in a parking lot where the assault continued, according to police, causing the victim to lose consciousness. At some point prior to losing consciousness, Johansen was able to call her parents, who contacted police after she “called them screaming, afraid that her boyfriend may kill her.”

Officers worked with Johansen’s family to obtain her location in North Nashville near Scovel Street, where the couple’s rental car was found at the 9th Street intersection. Officers said they could hear Johansen banging on the vehicle as she tried to escape the attack.

She was able to get out of the car when officers arrived. Rivers was seen reaching for a firearm in the back seat, but officers were able to take him into custody before he could reach it, according to Metro police.

After seven months in the Metro jail, Rivers’ bond was lowered from $250,000 to $150,000. He was released on bond on June 24, 2024.

On July 1, 2024, Johansen’s father Dr. Lance Johansen, received a voicemail from the Davidson County District Attorney’s Office warning him about Rivers’ release, adding he’d already violated the terms of his bond.

“When I got the voicemail, I already knew he was coming to kill her,” Dr. Johansen said. The next day, he filed a missing person’s report after his daughter’s front door was left open. Not only that, but the home security video was destroyed and she didn’t show up for work.

On July 3, 2024, her body was found in the back of a car, wrapped in trash bags and blankets.

According to prosecutors, Rivers stole Johansen’s vehicle, tried to clean it to hide evidence and took her body across county lines. He remains in jail and has pleaded not guilty to three charges; capital murder, taking possession of a motor vehicle and tampering with evidence.

In October 2024, a Nashville judge found the bonding companies were not found to have broken any rules.

Court documents showed several conditions of Rivers’ release were not properly communicated, including the requirement that he stay in Nashville and submit to GPS monitoring. The Davidson County Clerk’s Office also admitted it made a mistake.

The court found several areas of concern with the bonding companies, though neither committed any willful violations of the current terms or “governing provisions” for operation in Davidson County, and they were not suspended or terminated from doing business in Nashville.

The court found the “tragic situation” was attributed to “numerous system failures, poor individual judgment and missed opportunities.”

The lawsuit is seeking million in compensation for the violation of Johansen’s constitutional rights and for her wrongful death. The family is also seeking 0 million for the businesses’ intentional, fraudulent, malicious and/or reckless conduct.