First Lawsuit Filed In Bridge Collapse
By Marcus Gilmer in News on Jul 9, 2009 3:40PM
It was only a matter of time. The first of what promises to be many lawsuits related to the Fourth of July bridge collapse near Merrillville, Indiana has been filed. According to Fox 32:
Attorney Kenneth J. Allen said Wednesday he filed in Lake County on behalf of Gary, Ind., resident Treniece Campbell, 37, and her husband, Lawrence, 41. They are suing Ross Township and Ross Township Trustee John Rooda for $500,000.No one from Ross Township could be reached for comment.
Treniece Campbell attended the press conference in a wheelchair and said she was on pain medication for her fractured back.
Allen represents another injured person from the collapse but no suit has been filed on her behalf because a class-action suit could be on the way. Said Allen, "We haven't yet decided which cases we'll accept, but the important thing is it doesn't happen again. An investigation said the bridge collapsed because it was overloaded, and Allen is blaming that on police who were supposed to monitor groups going across the bridge: "They abandoned their posts as soon as the fireworks celebration was about to end."