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November 11

Family of teen who died in July crash files lawsuit

By Sheena Delazio sdelazio@timesleader.com
Staff Writer
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WILKES-BARRE – The family of a 16-year-old killed in a fiery car crash in July has filed a lawsuit in Luzerne County Court against the driver of the vehicle and the Glen Summit Co., alleging the teen’s death was caused by their acts.

Carolyn and Daniel Madry, parents of the late Brian Madry, filed the suit last week against the driver of the vehicle, 16-year-old Adam Fredmund, the Glen Summit Co. that owns Fountain Lake where the teens were drinking, and Kenneth John Rushinski, 21, of Luzerne, who was has been charged with supplying alcohol to the teens.

Fairview Township police and county detectives said Fredmund had been drinking alcohol at a party before crashing a 2004 Kia Optima on Lake Road, an isolated road in the Glen Summit section, early in the morning on July 18.

Madry, of Evergreen Lake Drive, Wright Township, was a passenger in the Kia. An autopsy determined he died of multiple traumatic injuries.

In the lawsuit filed by attorneys of the Anzalone Law Offices, Madry’s parents said they are seeking in excess of $300,000 in damages due to the “careless, negligent and reckless acts of the defendants collectively.”

The suit claims Fredmund acted negligently by operating a vehicle while under the influence, driving without a license, driving at an unsafe speed, failing to control the vehicle and operating the vehicle in an unsafe manner.

Fredmund had been adjudicated a delinquent by a county judge and ordered to live in a group home for an unspecified amount of time as a result of the accident.

The Glen Summit Co., the suit says, is responsible for Madry’s death because it failed to provide “appropriate security for Fountain Lake” when management should have known that “underage residents and non-residents conducted drinking parties” there.

The company should have alerted police to the activity, the suit says.

The suit also says the company failed to listen to residents’ complaints about providing security at the lake at night, and that because there was no security the company “maintained an attractive nuisance … in the evening hours.”

Lastly, the suit cites Rushinski’s negligence in providing alcohol for minors.

Rushinski is awaiting a formal arraignment in county court on related charges.

Madry’s parents also allege wrongful death in the suit against all three defendants and ask that they be compensated for pain and suffering, and the earning power of their son during his life expectancy.

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