Families of two teenage boys seriously injured in an October crash near Marysville that also killed a classmate have filed a $70 million damage claim against Snohomish County.
The damage claim faults the county over the design of the two-lane road where the crash occurred. It is the first step in a potential lawsuit.
Juan Mendoza, 16, was killed on the afternoon of Oct. 24 after the Honda Civic he was driving ran off 108th Street NE and hit some trees. His two passengers, Lars Kundu, 16, and Andy Vavrousek, 17, were airlifted to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle. The crash site is just west of 83rd Avenue NE.
At a Friday press conference in Seattle, attorneys for the injured teens accused the county of — despite clear warnings — failing to address the speed limit and the steep slope, and to provide sufficient signs on 108th.
“It should never have happened. I can’t express that strongly enough,” attorney Ann Deutscher said. “It’s a roadway where they know children are going to be driving, as well as members of the community, and they have chosen to do nothing.”
Recent changes made to the intersection made it more dangerous, attorney Jim Dore said.
“They may have fixed some of the issues with the sight distance, but they essentially created a launching pad as you go over the hill,” he said.
County attorneys had not received a copy of the claim as of Friday afternoon. They will withhold comment until after reviewing the allegations, Chief Civil Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Jason Cummings said.
The students involved in the crash attended Marysville Getchell High School.
Vavrousek, who suffered facial fractures and other injuries, has since returned to school, said his mother, Beth Vavrousek.
The claim states that Kundu suffered brain and spinal injuries in the crash, as well as broken bones. He has returned home but has been unable to attend school, said his mother, Nola Kundu. He has been receiving home tutoring for a math class but has been unable to continue taking college courses through the Running Start Program.
Mendoza’s family did not participate in Friday’s press conference, though those involved expressed condolences to them. The well-liked Marysville Getchell junior was known as a scholar and a soccer player.
On the day of the crash, the three boys were on their way to buy Slurpees at a 7-Eleven before cross-country practice.
Mendoza was behind the wheel of a 1997 Honda Civic, headed west on 108th, just before 2:30 p.m. when the car left the roadway, went down an embankment and hit the trees. The road is well traveled by students from both Marysville Getchell and Marysville-Pilchuck high schools.
The posted speed limit in the area is 35 mph. Deutscher said a traffic engineer she hired determined the stretch of road is safe only up to 18 mph.
Sheriff’s Office officials have said speed appears to have been a factor in the crash. However, an investigation involving a detailed accident reconstruction is likely to continue for months.
In addition to the damage amounts, the families are requesting that an outside agency such as the Washington State Patrol investigate the accident. They also want an outside consultant, or even an appointed board, to examine future safety improvements on 108th Street. Furthermore, they want the public to be able to have a say in any changes to the road.
The attorneys pointed much of their criticism at the County Council. The injured teens’ families last month testified about the road’s dangers during council discussions for a new housing development near where the crash occurred. The council eventually approved the development, at 13000 81st Ave. NE, but added a condition that a county engineer must approve modifications to the road before anyone can move into the new homes.
For Deutscher, that doesn’t go far enough. She wants guarantees from county leaders that appropriate fixes will materialize.
“We don’t believe they can be trusted given what’s gone on,” she said.
Deutscher previously represented Keito Swan, who was hit by a school bus in 2005 on a dark stretch of 108th Street NE in front of Marysville-Pilchuck High School. He spent several weeks in a Seattle hospital recovering from life-threatening injuries. The county later settled the case for $250,000 and the Marysville School District for $800,000.
Noah Haglund: 425-339-3465, nhaglund@heraldnet.com.
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