The attorney of the 11-year-old boy from the Bronx who was found in the Hudson River last week says he intends to file a $20 million lawsuit against the city for wrongful death within the next few weeks.
“We intend on filing a lawsuit after an administrator has been appointed,” said Ezra B. Glaser of Brooklyn. “In the meantime, we’ll file a notice of claim against the city. We believe that the disrepair of the park is the reason why two kids are now dead.”
Glaser and his paralegal pointed out and walked through a giant access point just east of the Harlem River Drive, where a fence that clearly had a lock on it also featured a huge hole that can put anyone dangerously close to the Harlem River.
What You Need To Know
- Attorney Ezra B. Glaser says he intends to file a $20 million lawsuit against the city for wrongful death of Alfa Barrie
- Glaser says dilapidated conditions just east of the Harlem River Drive includes a cut in a locked fence that make it easier to get dangerously close to the Harlem River
- Barrie’s body has not yet been buried, as the family waits for his father to return from out of the country
Glaser believes negligence from the city in not fixing that fence gave Alfa Barrie and his 13-year-old friend Garrett Warren easy access to the river that contributed to their deaths.
“We really don’t know all of the facts,” Glaser said. “We are still in the investigative phase, but one thing that has been said is that the kids climbed a fence and went through a hole in the fence. There’s one hole in a fence, and it’s right here, right by the water, and it’s a huge hole and it goes to the fact that this park that’s left in dilapidated condition has been left that way for a period of time. It goes to the negligence of the city.”
He says he plans to sue in damages from the city on several grounds, including wrongful death and pain and suffering in connection with the death of this bright and fun-loving 11-year-old from the Bronx who went missing the Friday before Mother’s Day.
“It’s heartbreaking for everybody that is actually living thru this,” Glaser said. “That’s true for an uncle that helped raise him, a sister that helped raise him, a sister that was closely involved in his everyday life and actually came out here with me to look at this place, and then the mother of course who is absolutely devastated.”
This past Thursday, Mayor Eric Adams paid a visit to the Harlem River to get a better idea of the circumstances that could have led to the boys’ death.
NY1 has reached out to city officials for comment about this pending litigation.
Barrie’s family continues to wait for word from the city’s Medical Examiner in regard to his cause of death.