Woman’s estate sues Toledo over fatal crash
10/18/2013The estate of a Toledo woman killed in 2009 when a car she was riding in smashed into a heavy-equipment trailer near the scene of a house fire is suing the city of Toledo, three city workers, and the car’s driver.
John W. McMahon, administrator of the estate of Latasha Dawson, filed the complaint Tuesday in Lucas County Common Pleas Court against the city of Toledo; Scott Williamson, a police officer; Jeff Smith and Michael Gosselin, employees of the streets, bridges, and harbor division, and Eric Jones, who is serving a six-year prison sentence for aggravated vehicular homicide for Ms. Dawson’s death.
The suit claims the city was “negligent and/or reckless” when it parked a city tractor-trailer rig in the eastbound right lane of West Central Avenue on Sept. 26, 2009, while it unloaded an excavator to tear down a Jermain Drive house that had burned that morning. The suit also says Jones, who was intoxicated and in whose car Ms. Dawson rode, slammed into the trailer.
The suit, which seeks punitive and compensatory damages in excess of $25,000, has been assigned to Judge Gene Zmuda.