BENTON – Administrators of Washington Park policeman Ricardo Davis’s estate dismissed a claim that the negligence of Poplar Street Bridge contractors caused him to fall to his death.
Jacquelynn Davis and Romero Davis dismissed the estate’s suit without prejudice, to preserve a right to sue again.
Officer Davis died in 2018, while chasing suspects.
He jumped from a section of the bridge, expecting to land on a section below, but plunged to the ground instead.
The estate sued KCI Construction, Thomas Industrial Coatings, and D&K Welding in St. Clair County circuit court last year.
Estate counsel Jason Caraway of Belleville claimed defendants failed to maintain a safe site, provide proper oversight, and warn of hazards.
Defendants removed the suit to U.S. district court, asserting diverse citizenship as Missouri corporations.
They moved to dismiss the suit and in January, Magistrate Judge Reona Daly dismissed it without prejudice.
Caraway amended the complaint to quote an appellate court that held a contractor liable for injuries from a metal beam that protruded from a barrier.
That court found contractors owe a duty to persons they might reasonably expect to be in the vicinity.
Defendants again moved to dismiss, but Daly denied the motion.
She found allegations of acts or omissions taken by defendants in relation to fall risks adequately addressed foreseeability and proximate cause.
She wrote that contractors have a duty of care to persons they reasonably expect to come upon the vicinity of construction sites.
Robert Wulff of St. Louis represented KCI Construction.
Brian McGovern and Brian Kaemmerer of Town and Country, Mo. represented Thomas Industrial Coatings.
Kyle Geiger of Chicago represented E&K Welding.