Politics
Ohio Supreme Court ruling exposes limits of 1985 bridge fencing policy
PN Team • 3 weeks ago
In an Oct. 6 ruling, the Ohio Supreme Court found the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) was not liable for the 2017 death of Marquise Byrd, a passenger struck by a sandbag thrown from Toledo's Indiana Avenue bridge during reconstruction. Protective fencing had been removed on the side under construction, and the court held ODOT retained discretionary immunity because no policy specifically required temporary fencing during construction work.
The decision contrasts with a 1996 case, Semadeni v. ODOT, in which the court found ODOT negligent for delaying implementation of its 1985 statewide bridge-fencing policy after a motorist was killed by concrete dropped from a Cincinnati overpass in 1990. That policy required fencing on qualifying existing bridges but initially funded only a fraction of them.
Justice Jennifer Brunner dissented in the Toledo case, arguing ODOT's removal of existing fencing without replacement was a negligent policy failure similar to Semadeni, not a protected discretionary choice. The appellate court had earlier ruled against ODOT before the Supreme Court reversed that decision.
Sources:
Sentiment
- Cincinnati Cincinnati is mentioned factually as the site of a 1990 death from a prior case, a tangential reference without direct reputational impact.
- Ohio Ohio is referenced as the jurisdiction and location of events in a factual, balanced manner.