Negligence

A man who claims he was improperly treated by Los Angeles City Fire Department paramedics, has filed suit claiming they administered medications that caused him permanent injuries. The man, identified in the complaint as John Doe, filed suit pro se in Los Angeles County Superior Court naming the City of Los Angeles, the two medics, and the hospital to which he was transported.

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An additional lawsuit has been filed over the Kansas City fatal apparatus accident, this time by the apparatus driver, IAFF Local 42, and the plaintiffs in the three prior lawsuits, claiming the city is responsible for the $32 million judgment that was awarded against the apparatus driver. There is a lot to unpack with this one as a high stakes strategic chess match is underway.

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It seems like each week I am only able to scratch the surface of the fire law news. This week is no exception, but I wanted to point out two additional noteworthy cases. The first involves the settlement of the city’s portion of the Kansas City, Missouri fatal apparatus accident case. The second case involves another firefighter being arrested while engaged in the performance of his duties by an overzealous cop.

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The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld a ruling in favor of the Miami Dade Fire Rescue and 3 firefighter paramedics accused of negligence and deliberate indifference in their response to a medical run in 2019. Diana Cluff and Jacqueline Beaz filed suit accusing the medics of delaying their response, falsifying reports, and failing to attempt to resuscitate their father, Gustavo Beaz.

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A Kansas City firefighter has been ordered to personally pay $32 Million for causing a crash that killed three people last December. Dominic Biscari was driving Pumper 19 that ran a red light, collided with an SUV, struck several parked cars, and came to rest in a building.

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A grand jury looking into the death of a recruit firefighter at the New York State Fire Academy in 2021 has declined to issue an indictment. Peyton Morse, a recruit with the Watertown Fire Department, died after suffering a medical emergency while in engaged in an arduous training evolution.

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An Oregon woman who claims she was sexually abused and given stolen drugs by a fire department paramedic has filed suit against the department and an area hospital. The plaintiff, identified as AH, is seeking $2 million in damages from the Eugene-Springfield Fire Department, PeaceHealth, the City of Eugene and the City of Springfield.

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A major fire at a Walmart distribution center in Plainfield, Indiana earlier this year, has led to the filing of tort claims with 34 different fire agencies. This is turn has prompted headlines proclaiming that Walmart has sued all of these entities, which is not the case - at least not as of today.

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The mother of a New York firefighter who died in an assisted living facility fire in 2021 has filed a wrongful death suit against the facility, its owners, two contractors, and the village where the fire occurred. Lieutenant Jared Calvin Lloyd died on March 23, 2021 at a building fire at the Evergreen Court Home for Adults.

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The City of Houston has prevailed in a lawsuit brought by the family of an elderly woman who died after a stretcher tipped over. Elizabeth Dott, 94, died 8 days after she sustained head injuries from the fall in July, 2020.

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The family of an Ohio man who claims responders administered Narcan to him when he was suffering from asthma-related respiratory distress, has filed suit contending their malpractice rendered him a quadriplegic. Nieawna Russell filed suit on behalf of her husband, Jimmy Earl Gamblin II, naming Harrison Township and the Harrison Township Fire Department.

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In this episode of Fire Law Roundup for August 8, 2022, Brad and Curt discuss a New Jersey lawsuit alleging firefighters responded to a fatal fire after drinking at a local event; a ruling that dismissed a lawsuit challenging Los ...

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A fatal house fire that led to criminal charges against a New Jersey landlord, has resulted in a wrongful death suit accusing the landlord and the local fire department with negligence. Haven Davenport died in the March 19, 2021 fire in Franklin Borough. She was 13 at the time.

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The Michigan Court of Appeals has ruled that governmental immunity does not protect a municipal fire department from liability for gross negligence in an EMS related wrongful death suit. The case was brought by the family of Patrick Antonio Clemons-Hodges, against the City of Detroit and two EMTs.

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