City of Anaheim pays $700,000 wrongful death settlement after tree crushes a man to death while in his van

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Falling Tree

Anaheim, CA: (Feb-27-08) The family of Michael Gandy brought a wrongful death lawsuit against the city of Anaheim, after a 50-foot-tall tree blew over, smashing Gandy's van and causing fatal injuries on the man's 49th birthday. The suit, filed in August 2007, claimed that the city failed to trim tree tops, but cut the roots that made the tree unstable in fierce Santa Ana winds. Legal counsel for the plaintiffs said that city crews trimmed the roots to prevent sidewalk cracks. The city now is evaluating its tree trimming practices to avoid future problems. The family sought $2.4 million in compensation, after the April 18 incident. Gandy had just finished his day as a church maintenance worker when he parked his white Ford Aerostar van on the tree lined Archer Street to work on writing a book on church history, only to suffer serious injuries when the tree fell, killing him.

The city council recently announced that the parties had reached a settlement agreement, in which the city will pay $700,000 to Gandy's mother and sister, who blamed the city's faulty tree trimming practices for Gandy's death. His family stated that Gandy had studied music as a graduate student, but gave up a potential opera career to dedicate his life to the church. [OC REGISTER: FATAL TREE FALL]