Current:Home > InvestCivil rights lawsuit filed over 2022 Philadelphia fire that killed 9 children and 3 adults-LoTradeCoin
Civil rights lawsuit filed over 2022 Philadelphia fire that killed 9 children and 3 adults
View Date:2024-12-23 20:00:02
Families of the 12 people killed in a Philadelphia row house fire that began in a Christmas tree two years ago sued a pair of city agencies Friday, claiming unsafe conditions on the property violated the victims’ civil rights.
The federal lawsuit against the Philadelphia Housing Authority and the city’s Department of Human Services, and various officials of the agencies, alleges that the housing authority knew the four-bedroom apartment it owns in a brick duplex was overcrowded and unsafe. Specifically, they allege that it lacked a fire escape, smoke detectors and other fire safety features.
Mayor Cherelle Parker’s spokesperson, Joe Grace, declined comment because the matter is in active litigation. Messages seeking comment were left Friday with spokespeople with the Philadelphia Housing Authority.
During two visits to the home in December 2021, a month before the fire, a Human Services social worker noticed the smoke detectors were inoperable, the lawsuit says, but did not return with working detectors as she promised.
Housing authority records show their staff made three visits in December 2021, but the lawsuit says records falsely showed “quality checks were performed on the smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors and they were operable.”
Three women and nine of their children — nearly all of the apartment’s 14 residents — were killed in what was called the city’s deadliest fire in more than a century. Officials reported that the early morning fire in Unit B of 869 N. Third St. started at a Christmas tree.
The housing authority, the lawsuit said, “knew of the grave risks associated with overcrowding, fire hazards and the lack of operable smoke detectors, and the serious dangers that the conditions posed” to the residents who died in the fire.
The lawsuit seeks monetary damages as well as an order that all of city’s public housing units be inspected and tested to ensure there are working smoke detectors.
A separate, negligence lawsuit regarding the fire was filed in March in Philadelphia Common Pleas Court. A spokesperson for the Kline and Specter law firm said Friday that case remains pending and is currently in the discovery phase.
veryGood! (37)
Related
- 24 more monkeys that escaped from a South Carolina lab are recovered unharmed
- Maine company plans to launch small satellites starting in 2025
- Body of diver found in Lake Erie ID'd as director of local shipwreck team
- Animal control officers in Michigan struggle to capture elusive peacock
- Mike Williams Instagram post: Steelers' WR shades Aaron Rodgers 'red line' comments
- New Orleans plans to spiff up as host of next year’s Super Bowl
- Man who attacked Muslim lawmaker in Connecticut sentenced to 5 years in prison
- Brittany Cartwright Details Horrible Insults Jax Taylor Called Her Before Breakup
- Family of security guard shot and killed at Portland, Oregon, hospital sues facility for $35M
- Horoscopes Today, June 3, 2024
Ranking
- Nearly 80,000 pounds of Costco butter recalled for missing 'Contains Milk statement': FDA
- Columbia University and a Jewish student agree on a settlement that imposes more safety measures
- Biden's new immigration order restricts asylum claims along the border. Here's how it works.
- Coco Gauff overpowers Ons Jabeur to reach French Open semifinals
- NASCAR Hall of Fame driver Bobby Allison dies at 86
- NYC couple finds safe containing almost $100,000 while magnet fishing in muddy Queens pond
- Man's body with barbell attached to leg found in waters off popular Greek beach
- Best Sunscreens for Brown Skin That Won’t Leave a White Cast: Coola, Goop, Elta MD & More
Recommendation
-
Prosecutor failed to show that Musk’s $1M-a-day sweepstakes was an illegal lottery, judge says
-
Gunman captured after shootout outside US Embassy in Lebanon
-
Geno Auriemma signs 5-year extension to continue run as UConn women's basketball coach
-
Columbia University and a Jewish student agree on a settlement that imposes more safety measures
-
Patrick Mahomes Breaks Silence on Frustrating Robbery Amid Ongoing Investigation
-
Gerry Turner Confirms What Kendall Jenner Saw on His Phone That She Shouldn't Have
-
Stolen classic car restored by Make-A-Wish Foundation is recovered in Michigan
-
Zac Brown's Ex Kelly Yazdi Slams His Ill-Fated Quest to Silence Her Amid Divorce