The family of Milena Del Valle, the Jamaica Plain woman killed in the Big Dig tunnel ceiling collapse, is close to accepting a settlement of approximately $6 million in its civil suit against the company that supplied the ceiling bolt epoxy believed to have caused the accident, according to lawyers involved in the case.
A settlement with Powers Fasteners - the only company currently facing criminal charges - would be the first in the multimillion dollar lawsuit brought by the 38-year-old woman's family against 15 defendants, including Big Dig project manager Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff, the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority, and several contractors.
Efforts to settle with the other companies have so far been unsuccessful, said the lawyers, who requested anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the negotiations.
As of late yesterday, a basic agreement had been reached but a few details remained unresolved, according to the lawyers. For example, part of the settlement called the release, which protects the company from further claims by the family, had not been finalized, according to one lawyer.
Powers Fasteners of Brewster, N.Y., would not comment on the settlement. But lawyers involved in the case speculated that the company's willingness to accept responsibility and compensate Del Valle's husband and three children could help the company fight a manslaughter charge brought by Attorney General Martha Coakley. The charge is pending in Suffolk Superior Court.
"When any party who is indicted works hard to make peace and find some measure of justice for the victim's family, it may not resolve the criminal matter, but it can hardly hurt it," said one lawyer involved in the case.
Emily LaGrassa, Coakley's spokeswoman, would not comment on the reported imminent settlement or how it might affect the criminal case.
It was also unclear how the settlement might affect the civil case against the remaining defendants. Originally described by plaintiffs' lawyers as having the potential to bring in hundreds of millions of dollars, a $6 million settlement with Powers may mean the ultimate payout will be much smaller than originally envisioned.
The lawsuit and subsequent criminal charges were filed after concrete ceiling panels in the Interstate 90 connector tunnel crashed down onto the car Del Valle was riding in on July 10, 2006. Federal investigators concluded that workers used the wrong epoxy when securing the ceiling.
Powers Fasteners was accused of failing to warn construction contractors and project managers of the potentially deadly consequences of using the wrong, fastdrying glue.
Powers offered $8 million to the state to avoid criminal charges, but Coakley was not satisfied and in August secured a grand jury indictment against the firm on one count of involuntary manslaughter. If convicted, the firm would face a maximum penalty of a $1,000 fine.
The Big Dig managers, Bechtel/Parsons Brinckerhoff, have also been negotiating with the attorney general's office to avoid criminal prosecution. They have offered more than $300 million, but so far no settlement has been reached. The US attorney's office, which is also investigating the tunnel ceiling collapse, would have to sign off on any settlement.
During depositions in the family's civil case this week, a Bechtel engineer who oversaw the installation of the ceiling in the I-90 tunnel refused to answer questions, according to two lawyers involved in the case. The engineer took the Fifth Amendment against self-incrimination, the lawyers said.
According to one person who was briefed on the contents of his deposition, the engineer refused to answer questions in the civil case because his testimony could be used against him in the ongoing criminal probe by Coakley. Employees of other Big Dig contractors, the person said, have also taken the Fifth Amendment in depositions. The engineer could not be reached for comment.
Last June secret mediation talks between Del Valle's family and the companies and the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority fell apart after the defendants made settlement offers the family's lawyers considered too low.
In a report prepared for the mediation talks, lawyers for the family made the case for a payout in the hundreds of millions of dollars for "outrageously egregious" acts that led to Del Valle's death.
