N.Y. asks for damage cap in ferry crash
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The Staten Island ferry after it slammed into a pier on October 15.
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NEW YORK (AP) -- The city moved Monday to limit its liability in a ferry crash that killed 10 commuters and injured dozens more, asking a federal judge for cap damages at $14.4 million.
The move angered plaintiffs' attorneys. Nearly 90 people have notified the city they intend to sue for a total of about $2 billion, the city Law Department said.
The department said the proposed cap would limit liability to the approximate value of the damaged Staten Island ferry under a provision of maritime law and encourage plaintiffs to settle out of court.
"It's my job to limit the city's liability," municipal attorney Michael Cardozo said Monday. "This is a very fair way."
Attorney Sanford Rubenstein, who represents a construction worker hurt in the crash, disagreed: "The city is attempting to use this statute as a hammer over the heads of the widows."
City officials fired ferry captain Michael Gansas last week for refusing to speak with federal investigators about the October 15 crash. The pilot, Richard Smith, has said he passed out at the controls before it crashed into a pier.
Witnesses have said Gansas was not alongside Smith at the time, which would be a violation of ferry rules.
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