City of Poughkeepsie Pays $500,000 To Settle Wrongful Death Lawsuit
Former public works employee Denis Keenan died in January 2005 after his sweatshirt caught in a shaft at the back of a truck as he unloaded salt after a day of plowing snow. An autopsy determined Keenan died of asphyxiation by compression and his death was ruled an accident. His estate settled the wrongful death lawsuit for $500,000 and both parties can now move on with their lives.
A 2005 state report on the death of Keenan found the city's failure to replace a safety guard on the salt spreader, combined with a too-long mechanical shaft, were direct causes of Keenan's death. Keenan, a father of two, had worked for the city for about a year when he was killed.
After his death, Keenan's widow sued the company that made the alleged unsafe salt spreader that Keenan was working with. Many times in wrongful death lawsuits there are multiple defendants.
