First, it was the media. Then it was the DFL. I suppose it was a matter of time before trial lawyers started to exploit the I-35W bridge collapse for personal gain.
Law firm petitions for access to I-35W bridge collapse site
8/14/2007 8:43:27 PM
Associated Press
MINNEAPOLIS -- A law firm asked a federal court to grant its experts immediate access to the Interstate 35W bridge collapse site so they can begin their own investigation into what could lead to wrongful death and personal injury lawsuits.
The petition was filed in U.S. District Court here Monday by the law firm of Schwebel, Goetz & Sieben, which specializes in personal injury cases. In the petition, the firm said it's representing three people severely injured in the Aug. 1 collapse and the families of two people who died in the disaster. It did not identify the victims, and attorney James Schwebel declined to reveal them.
A hearing on the petition was scheduled for 2 p.m. Wednesday before U.S. District Judge Patrick J. Schiltz in St. Paul. "We are in the very preliminary stage on this," Schwebel said. "We've been retained by several families. We've been contacted by many others. They're obviously wanting to make sure there is some accountability for whoever is culpable for this disaster, and we need to have experts to answer many of these questions for us."
Copies of the petition were served on the offices of the U.S. attorney for Minnesota, the Minneapolis city attorney and the state attorney general because federal, city and state and city agencies are involved in the collapse investigation. The U.S. attorney's office issued a statement calling the petition premature. "Efforts to recover the bodies of the victims are still under way and could be delayed or hampered by accommodating the law firm's request," the statement said. "Similar requests would be sure to follow. There will be ample time for a full investigation of the causes of the collapse after all the victims are accounted for."
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