WORLD-HERALD EXCLUSIVE
Will it become a pothole precedent, or is it simply a lawsuit riddled with holes?
Omaha resident Paul Tuohy filed suit Monday against the City of Omaha, alleging that his car suffered $1,300 in damage when he hit a series of potholes last spring.
Meanwhile, an Omaha attorney said he plans to file a lawsuit against the city in the next few weeks over damage that his Mercedes suffered in June.
Attorney James Sherrets said he had considered filing a class action lawsuit against the city on behalf of the record number of drivers submitting claims in the past year over tire-popping and rim-bending potholes. The city has received more than 272 claims for pothole damage in 2010 — five times the number of claims filed in 2009.
Sherrets, who says his 2010 Mercedes-Benz E350 suffered $2,000 in damage, decided against the class action suit “because I think the city has enough problems right now.”
That concern, however, won't stop Sherrets from seeking to take the deposition of Omaha Mayor Jim Suttle, who is in the midst of fighting an attempt to recall him from office.
Sherrets said he'll ask a judge for permission to explore “what Suttle knew” about the extent of the city's potholes. That means Suttle can add this to the list of reasons to fight to keep his job: a potential deposition on his pothole position.
“I'd like to question him on his knowledge of the pothole conditions generally,” said Sherrets, who acknowledged that he signed a petition to recall Suttle. “These aren't just bumps in the road; it's cost people hundreds of thousands of dollars because duty was shirked.
“Yet the city's attorneys play this game and pretend like the city isn't responsible because they didn't have specific notice of a problem.”
Aida Amoura, the mayor's spokeswoman, said the pothole criticism shows how far critics will sink to second-guess Suttle. Suttle pushed for — and the City Council passed — a $50 wheel fee on suburban commuters in the hopes of funding street repairs.
“Mayor Suttle didn't create these potholes,” Amoura said. “There's seemingly not enough things that people want to blame him for.”
City attorneys say they're not playing games to avoid blame on pothole claims. Under state law, cities and counties aren't liable for damage unless they've been given “reasonable notice” of a hazard and failed to correct it.
In turn, the city rarely pays out on pothole claims.
Assistant City Attorney Rosemarie Lee has said that last winter's record number of potholes made it difficult for city officials to know which specific pothole caused damage to a vehicle. Compounding the problem, she said, is the fact that a number of potholes popped up in the same spot where potholes had been previously repaired.
Sherrets acknowledged that a “brutal winter” contributed to the conditions.
However, he said the mayor, who took office in May 2009, and Public Works Department officials should have done more to seal the streets before winter. Sherrets also suggested that Suttle should have asked for volunteer pothole fillers from city departments beyond Public Works.
In the lawsuit filed Monday, Tuohy lists no problems with the mayor — only problems with his 1991 Buick LeSabre.
“All 4 struts ruined, left tie rod, bushings and it needs a front-end alignment,” he wrote.
Tuohy even attached a hand-drawn map of the route he used to take from home to work near Westroads Mall. Scribbled on Tuohy's map were 10 giant potholes.
“If a potential buyer discovers this damage, he would not want to buy it,” Tuohy wrote. “Plus, I need it fixed so it is safe to drive again.”
Contact the writer:
444-1275, todd.cooper@owh.com
Copyright ©2012 Omaha World-Herald®. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, displayed or redistributed for any purpose without permission from the Omaha World-Herald.
