Fatal crash leads to claim

By The Citizen staff report

Thursday, January 24, 2008 9:23 AM EST

A woman, whose son was injured in a motor vehicle accident that resulted in the death of an Auburn teenager, intends to sue Cayuga County and the town of Sennett.
The notice of claim, which was filed Wednesday, states that Lisa A. Zeyak, of Auburn, will seek damages for “wrongful, unlawful, negligent and careless acts and omissions” that she alleges have been committed by the county and town. The notice does not specify an amount, but states that the claim is for personal injuries, pain and suffering, medical expenses, property damage, loss of services and consequential damages.

At approximately 2 p.m. on Oct. 28, 2007, her son, Kevin Bouley, 16, drove a 2000 Ford Escort from Town Hall Road in Sennett into the path of a Centro bus traveling on Route 20. According to the claim, Bouley sustained a fractured collar bone, trauma, derangement and damage to his knee, and may be permanently impaired.

Sarah E. Smith, 16, of Auburn, a passenger in the Escort, was killed as a result of the accident.

The claim states that the county and town acted negligently by failing “to implement appropriate warnings or traffic control devices, ... to warn of inadequate sight distances, ... to properly inspect of make reasonable inspections of the intersection to determine traffic safety hazards, or otherwise address traffic safety hazards.”

Zeyak, who is representing herself, states in the notice that the claim is based on her familiarity with the intersection, as well as the police report and comments from witnesses.

Town of Sennett attorney Don Cheney said Wednesday that he did not want to comment on the claim. County attorney Fred Westphal was not available for comment Wednesday.

The Citizens' Say

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There are 15 comment(s)

yankeedoodle wrote on Jan 27, 2008 4:49 PM:

" why is everything about money, that is not what her claim is about. Lisa is simply trying to make that a safer road, so we dont have to read about another tragedy. Until people know the real story they should keep their mean comments to their self. "

yankeedoodle wrote on Jan 27, 2008 4:43 PM:

" WHY IS EVERYTHING ABOUT MONEY, FROM WHAT I HAVE HEARD, IT IS A MORAL ISSUE SHE IS TRYING TO MAKE THE ROAD SAFER SO THAT WE DONT HAVE TO READ ABOUT ANOTHER TRAGEDY. IT IS DEFINITELY A DAGEROUS ROAD. HER CLAIM IS WELL SUPPORTED. "

SopranoChick wrote on Jan 25, 2008 10:31 PM:

" This mother should be ashamed of herself. It was her son's inexperience that lead to this accident adn the death of a bright young woman. He should not have even been drving by himself, let alone with other kids in the car. He only had a junior license, which requires you to have a licensed driver with you while driving; it also doesn't allow you to have any passengers other than that driver. The town, county or driver of the bus have done nothing wrong and that has already been proven.Any one who thinks otherwise should possibly have their head examined. "

2169 wrote on Jan 25, 2008 10:28 AM:

" Are you kidding me. Are you crazy Zeyak. You should be happy if the Smiths ever say Hi to you, let alone sue you. From what I have watched on the tv and have heard from others your son is in fault of killing a daughter, a sister, a girlfriend, a niece, a cousin, a granddaughter, and a bestfriend at the ripe age of 16. You need to get your act together, look around you, and probably be ashamed of your actions. Rest In Peace Sarah E. Smith. You Will Never Be Forgotten. And to all of you who were close to Sarah, Scott&Mary&Rob&Julie&Ashley. "

mom of an angel wrote on Jan 25, 2008 9:21 AM:

" Shame on you...(the mom of the driver). Let Sarah rest in peace, and her family and friends to grieve,not to worry how much "bad" money you are going after.... It was your faukt as much as your son's for this accident. Pertaining to the person who said" you should be lucky that Sarah's parente don't sue you" is 100% correct. If there should be any money here it should go to them, for their loss is for an ETERNITY...When you lose a child it's the worst thing in the world, cherish your son, knowing that He is alive and with you physically. His injuries will heal in time, Sarah's and her families will last a LIFETIME>>>>. Get over it, and get the "greediness" out of your life!!!!! SHAME ON YOU!!!! "

boredinmoravia wrote on Jan 24, 2008 11:02 PM:

" PLease Please lady give the kids time to grieve because some are not over the loss of a friend named sarah and she didnt deserve the irresponsible actions of your son. Sarah's death devistated my daughter and now you dredge this up all over again to bring back my daughters pain and loss of a good friend!! "

pathetic wrote on Jan 24, 2008 7:36 PM:

" How pathetic that you justify your own negligence as a parent with what amounts to a pitiful attempt to lay blame elsewhere. There is no way any 16 year old with a LICENSE let alone a learner's permit should be on the roads with a carload of friends - they are simply not experienced enough. It would be nice if you could tend to your own child who is likely devastated instead of worrying about how much money you can make from this tragedy. Your own lack of accountability is shocking and it's parents like you who refuse to set limits and enforce age appropriate rules that set the stage for tragedies such as this. How disgusting. "

gman wrote on Jan 24, 2008 7:29 PM:

" Hey maybe she can make a few million off her son's stupidty. What a DISGRACE!! Miss Zeyak: shame, shame, shame!!!! "

heartbreakkidtrc wrote on Jan 24, 2008 6:04 PM:

" and she is suing for county and town of sennett for...? You son was at wrong someone died for his wrong doing. Enough said..this lawsuit is just for money, and if she does win this suit all money awarded to her should do directly to the family of Sarah. "

doodles13021 wrote on Jan 24, 2008 5:49 PM:

" A lawsuit without merit. How about suing the driver for causing the accident. How about the individuals who, for a while after the tragedy, stood by the site and pelleted Centro busses with objects as they drove by?

What about the bus driver who is traumatized by this whole incident. What about the fire and rescue personel at the scene and the PTSD they may suffer from this. People just see dollar signs, not the human toll that this has taken. "

random wrote on Jan 24, 2008 5:36 PM:

" I cannot believe what I'm reading.
The papers did say at the time of the accident that he failed to yield the right of way at a stop sign and he was operating the vehicle with a restricted license: learning permit.
My heart goes out to Sarah, again, and her family. This girl tragically lost her life and he was operating the vehicle she was riding in - and owns the responsibility. That would mean his mother/father are financially and legally responsible for him because he was not 21. Instead of trying to put the responsibility for his errors on the town/county - put the responsibility where it belongs. "

Leon Kapowski wrote on Jan 24, 2008 3:37 PM:

" In my opinion, this suit is an affront to the memory of Sarah Smith. I wonder if she's representing herself because no attorney in their right mind would take the case because it's meritless, or if she just didn't want to have to share any potential settlement with one.

It's actions like this by parents that show kids that they don't need to take responsibility for themselves, there's always someone else you can blame for something going wrong. The whole situation front to back is just terrible. "

2076 wrote on Jan 24, 2008 2:08 PM:

" I do believe that the paper originally said that the driver was 16 yers old and on a junior permit...You might want to sue yourself for letting him drive..or hope that the Smith family doesn't sue you..Duh!! "

BBGONZA@AOL.COM wrote on Jan 24, 2008 1:40 PM:

" FROM EVERYTHING I HAVE READ ABOUT THIS TRAGEDY I AGREE WITH CHRIS BE A REAL PARENT SET A GOOD EXAMPLE INSTEAD OF WHAT YOU ARE DOING AND TAKE RESPONSABILITY FOR WHAT YOUR KNOW IT ALL SON DID AND STOP BLAMING THE COUNTY FOR HIS LACK OF INTELLIGENCE IN DRIVING A CAR. "

chris van note wrote on Jan 24, 2008 11:43 AM:

" I thought the stop sign at the end of Town Hall Road was an appropriate traffic control device...The whole situation is tragic but trying to sue the county for her son's inexperience behind the wheel and obvious poor judgement that cost the life of another teen is abhorrent. Something for nothing, nice way to set an example. You should be ashamed of yourself. "

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