Mother of toddler who died in apartment fire files $25 million lawsuit
Attorneys for the Mom of a toddler who was killed in an apartment complex fire last week say that they are seeking answers in the form of a multimillion-dollar lawsuit.
The toddler, Gisselle Gomez, 2, died last week after a fire started in her home at The Lodge Apartments in southwest Houston.
Her mother — Betzahida Vivero — is still too upset to talk about Gisselle’s death. However one of her attorneys is speaking after filing a $25 million dollar lawsuit on her behalf.
“It’s like a huge hole has been ripped into her heart,” says attorney Tony Buzbee. “She is dealing with that the best that she can. All the while, she still has to be a mother to her 5-year-old.”
The lawsuit alleges that the apartment owner — Houston-based Jaw Equity Management — was negligent in Gisselle’s death.
The girl’s room had no working smoke detector, the one smoke detector in the apartment also wasn’t working and neither was the lone fire extinguisher at the complex.
“We want to know how it can be that an apartment complex in our city does not have fire extinguishers that work,” says Buzbee. “Does not have some sort of fire alarm or detection systems that works.”
The lawsuit is now seeking $25 million in damages but Vivero’s attorneys say the goal is about more than money.
“If this lawsuit leads to an apartment complex owner or the city doing a little bit better and it saves a life,” says Buzbee. “Then it was worth it.”
Toddler Dies After Being Hit In Strange Way By Mom’s SUV
TRAGEDY STRIKES FAMILY BIRTHDAY PARTY
What was supposed to be a day full of birthday fun turned out to be a day of tragedy for one family in Maine.
According to reports, 17-month-old Tiannah Sevey died on Saturday, September, 23, after being struck by her mother’s SUV.
The incident reportedly occurred during a family birthday party.
It was reported that Taneisha Thomas, 27, was having a birthday party for her 10-year-old daughter.
The Lewiston Police Department suspects that Thomas was backing up when her 2004 Mercury Mountaineer struck the toddler.
Tiannah was transported to Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston, Maine, but tragically, she later succumbed to her injuries.
While at the scene, investigators gave Thomas a blood testa and Although the incident was an accident and the blood test is a standard procedure, unfortunately – there is a reason why the mother is being investigated.
Apparently, Thomas has a disheartening past with alcohol that previously led to charges against her.
Then to make things worse, there’s a weird connection between the two incidents.
Like the latest incident involving the death of her daughter, Thomas had a motor vehicle accident in from of her home back in 2013.
According to Maine State Bureau of Identification records, Thomas was in fact convicted of operating under the influence after hitting a parked car in front of her home.
At the time of the accident, her blood alcohol level was 0.27 percent. In addition to the charge for that incident, she is also facing another OUI charge.
As a result of the charge, Thomas’ license was suspended on August 17. However, she had been granted a conditional license, which isn’t set to expire until October 7. No charges have been filed against Thomas.
But she does have a hearing regarding her license suspension this week. It has also been reported that the’ results of Thomas’ blood test could take weeks to return.
A GoFundMe account has also been established for the toddler’s funeral expenses.