Family Files Suit in Death of Teen at Construction Site
The family of a 19-year-old Mission Viejo man who died when he fell into a hole at a Foothill toll road construction site filed a wrongful death lawsuit Thursday against transportation and construction officials.
The suit, filed by the mother and sister of Michael Suss, claims the construction site was negligently designed and maintained. It names the state, the county, the Transportation Corridor Agencies and MCM Construction Inc.
Sharon Lowsen, an Anaheim attorney representing Linda and Jennifer Suss, said Michael Suss was riding his dirt bike with two other friends on the afternoon of Nov. 23 when he fell into an unmarked hole more than 3 feet deep.
“He just disappeared and (his friends) went looking for him and found his body,” Lowsen said.
The teen-ager, who was training at the time to take over his family’s electrical business, died of multiple injuries, Lowsen said.
A fence at the Foothill Transportation Corridor site was open at the time of the incident, Lowsen said. The suit seeks unspecified damages.
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