Bettendorf faces lawsuit over deadly crash on I-74 bike path
By Rachel Davis
UPDATE, June 15, 1:56 p.m.
“The City of Bettendorf has not been served or seen the lawsuit. At this time, the City will not comment on open litigations.”
Lauran Haldeman, Public Information Officer, Bettendorf City Hall
EARLIER: The City of Bettendorf has been named in a lawsuit over a deadly crash on the new Interstate 74 bike path.
Attorney Devon C. Bruce, a partner at the law firm of Power Rogers, LLP in Chicago, has filed a lawsuit in the Northern District of Illinois Western Division arising out of the “catastrophic injuries and ultimate death suffered by 18-year-old Anthony Castaneda,” according to a news release from the law firm.
The crash happened on the newly constructed pedestrian walkway between the Cities of Bettendorf and Moline on May 22. A ribbon cutting ceremony was performed for the pedestrian walkway on May 18.
“According to the press reports at the time, the Bettendorf City Administrator, Decker Ploehn, had stated that the Iowa Department of Transportation preferred to delay the path’s opening, but Bettendorf city officials were eager to allow people to start using it,” the release says.
On May 22, the pedestrian walkway entrance in Bettendorf did not have any bollards – short posts used to divert traffic from an area or road – or other barriers to prevent traffic from traveling onto the pedestrian walkway, the release says.
The pedestrian walkway is reported to be about 14 feet wide. On May 22, Anthony Castaneda and two friends were walking on the pedestrian walkway when an intoxicated driver entered the pedestrian walkway in Bettendorf and operated her Cadillac Escalade into the three individuals, “causing catastrophic injuries to all three pedestrians resulting in two deaths,” the release says.
The lawsuit alleges that the City of Bettendorf was negligent and willful and wanton in failing to place barriers at the entrance to the pedestrian walkway to prevent traffic from traveling on it.
“This is a tragic and very preventable occurrence which has caused the death of two young
individuals and caused serious injuries to another,” Bruce said in the news release. “This should never have been allowed to happen.”
The complaint further alleges the City of Bettendorf was “negligent and willful and wanton” in the design, construction and the premature opening of the pedestrian walkway without proper barriers to stop motor vehicle traffic from entering it.
Bruce has previously represented plaintiffs in significant cases in Western Illinois, including his representation of the City of Dixon, for which he obtained $40 million for the citizens of the City of Dixon. This recovery, arising out of the embezzlement by Rita Crundwell, was the largest reported governmental accounting malpractice recovery in the history of the United States, the release says.
Bruce’s case was featured in an award-winning documentary entitled, “All the Queen’s Horses.” Bruce also obtained recoveries for a number of families who suffered injuries and deaths of loved ones during a Fourth of July celebration on the Rock Island Courthouse lawn in 2020 when a tree limb fell on them, the release says.
A suspect faces multiple charges
The Rock Island County State’s Attorney has filed multiple charges against Chhabria A. Harris, 46, of East Moline.
According to a release from the Moline Police Department, Anthony M. Castaneda, 18, of Moline died from his injuries after being struck by a vehicle. Castaneda was pronounced dead May 26 by the Johnson County medical examiner. Castaneda is the second death from an incident on May 22.
One victim, Ethan L. Gonzalez, 21, of Moline, was declared dead at the scene. A third unnamed victim remains in critical condition.
Harris is being held on $2 million bond on multiple charges, surrounding charges of drunk driving in an SUV on the 14-foot-wide path between Bettendorf and Moline. Officers found three victims who had been struck by a vehicle that drove through the walkway.
After the accident, officials found Harris in East Moline, where she was seen getting out of a white Cadillac Escalade SUV, matching witness statements from the I-74 bridge accident. Harris was taken to UnityPoint on suspicion of driving under the influence. She was released from UnityPoint and taken into custody by Moline Police Officers.
