BERNE, NY – A man was killed last Wednesday when he became trapped under a dump truck at the Town of Berne Solid Waste Transfer Station.
ABC 10 reports that the man has been identified as Peter Becker, a former Berne Fire District Chief.
Police officers and emergency responders arrived at the scene at about 8:45 a.m. on October 21. They freed Becker from beneath the vehicle, pronounced him dead at the scene, and transported his body to Ellis Hospital for an autopsy.
Albany County Sheriff Craig Apple classified the death as a workplace fatality. His office’s Criminal Investigations Unit will investigate the incident alongside New York State Employee Safety and Health.
The circumstances surrounding Becker’s death remain unclear at this time.
Filing a lawsuit against a municipality
In New York, as in most states, there is a strict statute of limitations that determines the maximum amount of time following an injury event during which a claimant can file a lawsuit. For most negligence cases—including car accidents and premises liability—the statute of limitations is three years. For cases involving medical malpractice, the statute of limitations is 2 ½ years. Once the statute of limitations has elapsed, you cannot file a lawsuit.
However, if a municipal government was responsible for your injury, the statute of limitations becomes much tighter: 90 days to file a notice of claim, and a year and 90 days to bring a lawsuit. Because of this, it is incredibly important to bring your case in a timely fashion.
The laws get more complicated for government workers who have been injured or killed by their employer—that is, the government’s—negligence. If your loved one died was killed while working a government job, an experienced New York wrongful death lawyer can help determine your best course of action.
Contact Our Workplace Accident Law Firm in Bronx, NY
The team at Oresky & Associates understands how devastating fatal commercial vehicle accidents like these can be for surviving family members and others. Our thoughts are with the family of the victim. If you’ve lost a loved one in a commercial vehicle accident or on a job site in New York and you need legal assistance, contact the Bronx workplace accident lawyers at Oresky & Associates, PLLC at your nearest location to schedule a free consultation and one of our New York wrongful death attorneys will get in touch with you.
We have two convenient locations in New York:
Oresky & Associates, PLLC – Bronx Office
149 E 149th St
Bronx, NY 10451
(718) 993-9999
Oresky & Associates, PLLC – Queens Office
104-09 Roosevelt Ave
Queens, NY 11368
(347) 507-3884
