SEATTLE — There’s a new call for safety changes at Gas Works Park after a teenager fell to his death from a 50-foot-tall park structure, and as an attorney explains why there may be no legal recourse for the victim’s family.
Davis Law Group claims the family of Mattheis Johnson reached out for help in the days after his deadly fall, but the firm said state law provides immunity to the city in cases like this one. Still, attorney Colin Hutchinson said he’s found 12 instances since 2009 of people seriously injuring themselves or dying from falls at the park, and he wants to see the city take accountability.
“I think they’re looking for any answers, any accountability from the people in control of Gas Works Park, the people who put fencing up and are meant to protect people from accessing this potentially dangerous condition on the land,” Hutchinson explained…