Immunity

Ohio Court Rules Removing Hose Retention Devices At Most Negligent Not Wilful

The Ohio Court of Appeals has ruled that the Toledo Fire and Rescue Department was at worst negligent when it removed safety netting on the hose beds of its engine companies, and thus is entitled to immunity protection in a wrongful death suit brought by the estate of a man who was struck and killed by a hose in 2014.

Clumsy Plaintiffs and Standpipes

Today’s burning question: I was walking in an older part of the city of [redacted] recently when I tripped and fell, hitting an uncapped standpipe connection on the way down. The edge of the standpipe was jagged and rusty. I now have a significant injury to my face as a result that required plastic surgery. Can I sue the fire department for my injury?

Burning Question: Wilmington LODD Suit, Civil Rights Violation, and Deliberate Indifference

Today’s burning question: I saw your article on the Wilmington LODD lawsuit and do not understand why the families of the deceased firefighters would bother suing the city for a civil rights violation. Answer: Civil rights suits are viewed by some attorneys as a strategic “end around” the tort defenses that fire departments would typically raise in cases like this. Whether the strategy will actually work is another story.

Oakland Dismissed from San Pablo Avenue Fire Suit

An Alameda County Superior Court judge has dismissed the City of Oakland from a lawsuit over the deaths of four people in fire at a halfway house last year. Judge Brad Seligman ruled that the state’s immunity laws shielded the city from liability despite criticism that fire inspectors did “too little too late”.

Bridgeport Sues Contractor For Indemnification Over Fatal Fire

The City of Bridgeport, Connecticut and its Mayor, fire chief, fire marshal, zoning official, and building official have filed suit against a construction company seeking indemnification for any damages they may have to pay in a previously filed lawsuit over a four fatality fire

Connecticut Supreme Court Holds the Failure to Conduct Required Fire Inspections Could Be Reckless Warranting a Jury Trial

In a 5 to 1 decision handed down today, the Connecticut Supreme Court ruled that a wrongful death suit against the Bridgeport Fire Department should proceed to trial because the city’s failure to meet its obligation to inspect buildings may ...

DCFEMS Dismissed from L’Enfant Plaza Suit

A US District Court judge today dismissed the District of Columbia Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department from the mass tort suit involving the L’Enfant Plaza smoke incident. The incident occurred in 2015 when an electrical problem caused power cables to begin emitting large quantities of smoke inside a metro tunnel.

Michigan Junk Science Fire Investigators Not Liable for Erroneous Conviction

A man who was convicted of arson for a 1985 fire that killed his wife and daughters, has lost his bid to hold investigators accountable for the years he spent in prison because they used now-discredited myths about arson.

Judge Rules Immunity Protects Maine Department From Liability

A Maine judge has granted summary judgment to a local fire department in a suit brought by a building owner who claimed the fire chief allowed his building to burn because of a decades old grudge.

Court Dismisses LODD Suit Under Workers Comp Exclusivity Immunity

An Oklahoma trial court has dismissed a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the widow of a firefighter who died last year at the scene of a water rescue. Claremore Fire Captain Jason Farley died on May 23, 2015 when he was pulled into a flooded storm drain

Columbus Settles Wrongful Death Suit for $1.2 Million

The City of Columbus has agreed to settle a wrongful death suit brought by the estate of a woman who died in 2011, for $1.2 million. The case has garnered some sensational headlines, including allegations the medics appeared more concerned with their own lunch plans than the condition of the patient.

Podcast Episode 12 – Vallejo Firefighter Awarded $2.3 Million

In this episode, Curt talks with Oakland attorney Leslie Levy about the $2.3 million verdict she won on behalf of former Vallejo firefighter Todd Milan. Milan was terminated from the Vallejo Fire Department in November, 2012.

Nebraska Supreme Court Rules in Roadway Cleanup Case

The Supreme Court of Nebraska has ruled that a fire department can be liable to a motorist injured due to the department’s negligence in clearing spilled debris from a roadway. The court went even further ruling that the fire department’s response to the scene cuts off any duty that the original motorist may have had to other motorists for causing the initial spill.

Arizona Not Liable to Homeowners for Property Lost in the Yarnell Fire

People in the wildland fire community will be familiar with the Yarnell Hill Fire of 2013. This fire occurred in 2013 and led to the death of 19 firefighters, all members of the Granite Mountain Hotshots team. Only one member of the team survived. Apart from this tragedy a number of homes were lost to the fire and homeowners sued the Arizona State Forestry Division (ASFD) claiming that the division ‘negligently failed to protect them from harm that resulted from the Fire’.

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