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Verdict OK'd in case of Pa. girl's fire hose death
The Associated Press

HARRISBURG, Pa. — A Pennsylvania appeals court upheld a $4.5 million jury verdict Tuesday against a truck manufacturer over an accident near Pittsburgh four years ago in which a 6-pound fire hose nozzle became a fatal projectile.

The lawsuit was filed by two families over an August 2004 incident in Coraopolis in which a hose dangling from a moving fire truck became stuck under a parked car, then whipped around and struck two 10-year-old girls standing on a nearby lawn.

Erin Schmidt died of head injuries and her close friend and classmate, Joeylynne Jeffress, suffered extensive injuries but survived.

The plaintiffs also include three witnesses to the accident: Erin's mother, Joyce A. Schmidt; Erin's 13-year-old sister, Lindsay; and Joeylynne's 14-year-old sister, Lauren.

A divided three-judge Superior Court panel said state law allows bystanders who witness injury to a close relative to collect damages for emotional distress under certain circumstances.

"The courts have generally concluded that the definition of 'physical harm' encompasses injury that solely manifests itself in the form of emotional shock and disturbance," wrote Judge Cheryl Lynn Allen for the majority.

The court also ruled that Sinor Manufacturing Inc. of Clinton, Okla., which purchased at least parts of the company that manufactured the fire truck, inherited liability for the accident. Sinor is now known as Freightliner Specialty Vehicles Inc.

John Gismondi, attorney for the plaintiffs, said Sinor was willing to "trade on" manufacturer Boardman Co.'s reputation for business purposes after it acquired Boardman.

"If they were pretending to be Boardman in public, then they have to take responsibility for what the truck did to the girls," he said. "They can't have it both ways."

Phone messages seeking comment from Freightliner Specialty Vehicles president Tim Sinor and the company's attorney, Kim M. Watterson, were not immediately returned Tuesday.

The plaintiffs earlier reached a $500,000 civil settlement with the Coraopolis Volunteer Fire Department.

Gismondi said Joeylynne has undergone major facial and eye surgery and has scars but has been able to return to school.