NEW LONDON, Conn. (AP) -- A woman whose 15-month-old son and 10-year-old sister were slashed to death in her apartment, is suing city officials and members of the fire department.
Jennifer Turner, who survived a stabbing spree at the Thames River Apartments in April, Monday filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the city and several members of the fire department, saying they failed to respond adequately and ignored safety conditions at the public housing complex.
On April 20, police said Robert Swain III went on a stabbing spree, attacking Turner, and her neighbor, Rita Whitehead, who had come to her assistance.
While Turner and Whitehead survived, Turner's son, Josiah, and her sister, Emmaline, were stabbed to death.
Turner's lawsuit contends that the city and the New London Housing Authority created an atmosphere of negligence when they failed to correct a series of security breaches at the housing complex.
The lawsuit also claims that several members of the fire department failed to appropriately respond.
After stabbing Turner and Whitehead, Swain had barricaded himself in an apartment with the two children, according to police. Police tried to break into Turner's apartment and requested a master key from the fire department. The fire department allegedly refused to give police the key.
City Manager Richard Brown, in a review of the response to the standoff, praised the police and fire departments, calling their response prompt and brave in a memo he sent to the City Council. Brown dismissed any role that a master key may have played in the standoff.
Information From: The Day
