Negligence

The family of a Florida firefighter who was fatally injured when a trailer filled with sand tipped, has filed suit accusing the city of gross negligence and wrongful death. Apopka firefighter Austin Duran was injured on June 30, 2022 while attaching the trailer to a fire department vehicle.

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Los Angeles County has agreed to settle a lawsuit brought by a fire captain who was shot by a firefighter in 2021. The settlement calls for a payment of $2.6 million to Captain Arnoldo V. Sandoval, who suffered serious injuries in the incident that occurred at Station 81.

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The husband of a woman who died in an apparatus accident involving a Rockford, Illinois engine last March, has filed suit against the city and the apparatus driver. Ismael Mondragon filed suit as the administrator of Marta Sandoval Esquivias’ Estate as well as in his own name, against the city and firefighter Miguel Holland.

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The family of a California fire department mechanic who took his own life in 2022, is suing the fire department for failing to prevent the harassment that pushed him to the brink. Trenton Jennings committed suicide in the parking lot at Station 17 of the South Placer Fire District.

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Two wildland fire related lawsuits are in the Fire Law headlines, brought by the nation’s two largest wildland firefighting agencies, the US Forest Service and CalFire. The US Forest Service filed suit against Southern California Edison and Utility Tree Service over the Bobcat Fire in 2020.

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A volunteer firefighter with the Hawaii County Fire Department who was burned at a wildland fire in 2021, has filed suit against the department and three fire officers. Elizabeth Stabo filed suit last week in Hawaii’s Third Circuit Court, which covers Hawaii County.

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Maui County has filed suit against four utility companies servicing the island seeking damages arising out of the devastation wildland fires that occurred earlier this month. The suit names Maui Electric Company, Limited, Hawaiian Electric Company, Inc., Hawaiʻi Electric Light Company, Inc., and Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc. as defendants.

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The Fourteenth District Court of Appeals of Texas has dismissed a lawsuit brought by the driver of a car that was struck by a Houston engine that was backing up. Emmitt Wilson filed the suit in state court naming the city and firefighter Jason Carroll as defendants

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The family of a woman who died in a fatal fire in Coolidge, Arizona, has filed suit against the city alleging the fire department was responsible for her death. Nicole Erin Gustafson died in a house fire on June 12, 2022.

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A class action lawsuit has been filed against Maui Electric Company, Limited, Hawaiian Electric Company, Inc., Hawaii Electric Light Company, Inc., and Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc. alleging they bear responsibility for the tragic Lahaina Fire on the Island of Maui. At present at fire has claimed at least 99 lives, destroyed 2700 buildings, burned over 2,000 acres and caused damages estimated at over $5 billion.

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The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that EMS personnel who mistakenly pronounced a disabled woman dead, cannot be held liable for her subsequent death under a civil rights theory, despite the fact their error delayed life-saving treatment. The case involves the death of 20-year-old Timesha Beauchamp in Southfield, Michigan.

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A California firefighter who was physically assaulted by a fire captain and a firefighter has filed suit against both of them and his fire department. Michael Botill filed suit against the Central Fire District of Santa Cruz County, Captain Dan Jordan and firefighter Forrest Gleitsman alleging assault, battery, harassment, negligent hiring, negligent retention, and whistleblower retaliation.

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The San Diego Fire Department is being sued by the guardian ad litem for the estate of an 11-year-old girl and her two sisters who claim the fire department, the police department, and a handful of others bear partial responsibility for neglect and abuse perpetrated by their adoptive parents. Steven Ratner filed suit in San Diego County Superior Court on behalf of the estate of Arabella McCormack and her younger sisters identified as A.M. and E.M.

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The estate of a woman who was shot by her boyfriend has filed suit against FDNY and NYPD claiming that they failed to provide her with timely medical assistance. Gloria Felix, as administratrix for the Estate of Migdalia Ortega, filed suit seeking $7 million in damages.

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