Landlord, Huntington being sued over freak death

WAYNE - The daughter of a man who was killed by a faulty window frame is suing the landlord of the building and the City of Huntington.

Betty Spence claims in a lawsuit filed March 1 in Wayne Circuit Court that her father Pedro Escobar, 73, was sitting on the porch or balcony of his residence located on Piedmont Road in Westmoreland on July 25 when the wind blew apart a window frame from an adjacent building, causing the window to strike Escobar on his second-floor landing.

The complaint says that Escobar was reading his Bible at the time.

"As result of the window frame striking Pedro Pastor Escobar, he suffered a penetrating head trauma causing him to be killed," the complaint adds.

The lawsuit alleges that landlord Betty Shepard failed to keep her building in good repair, and that the building was empty and a danger to the community, especially the windows.

It also alleges that the City of Huntington ignored requests made by neighbors to inspect the building and that the building was in such poor condition that it should have been condemned.

She is seeking a compensatory amount to be determined by a jury. She claims to have suffered the following damages: funeral bill and burial expenses; loss of solace, comfort and wise counsel; grief; companionship; services to his family and such further loss as may be proved at time of trial; and loss of future income.

William Redd is representing Spencer. Judge Darrell Pratt will handle the case

Wayne Circuit Court case number 06-C-046