$7 Million Jury Verdict for Wrongful Death of Maintenance Worker for Failure to Provide Safety Equipment

Bronson Ganka was a maintenance worker for Apartments Downtown Inc., a private company that builds apartments in Iowa City, Iowa. Iowa City is a college town where the University of Iowa is located. Ganka was 40 at the time.

While he was drilling holes into a building he was working on, he fell off a ladder and hit the ground 12 feet below.

Ganka suffered head injuries and died several days later. He was survived by his wife, a minor child and two adult children.

Ganka’s wife sued the son of the company’s owners (Apartments Downtown Inc.) who was also Ganka’s co-employee and supervisor and could therefore be named under state law alleging gross negligence for choosing not to provide safety equipment. This included hard hats and safety training. There was no claim for lost income.

The defendant argued that Ganka should have used an on-site scissor lift instead of climbing the ladder.

The jury signed a verdict for $7 million finding that Ganka was 20% at fault for his contribution to his fall and subsequent death.

The attorneys handling this wrongful death case were Pressley Henningsen and Brian Ivers.

Ganka v. Clark, No. LACV 077993 (Iowa Dist. Ct. Johnson County).

Kreisman Law Offices has been handling construction work injuries, work injury and death cases, catastrophic injury lawsuits and truck accident cases for individuals, families and loved ones who have been injured, harmed or killed by the carelessness or negligence of another for more than 40 years in and around Chicago, Cook County and its surrounding areas, including Maywood, Summit, Bedford Park, Alsip, Harvey, Dolton, Midlothian, Western Springs, Countryside, Country Club Hills, Brookfield, Joliet, Hillside, Hickory Hills, Crete, Wilmette, Westchester, Tinley Park, Hanover Park, South Barrington, Lincolnwood, Northlake, Glencoe, Northfield, Glenview, Crestwood, Chicago Heights, Chicago (Pulaski Park, Greek Town, Near North, Margate Park, Logan Square, Lake-Balmoral, Lakeview East, Kelvyn Park, Irving Park East, Wicker Park, Pullman, Streeterville, Sauganash, Roscoe Village, Rose Hill), Cicero, Deerfield, Des Plaines and Geneva, Ill.