Jury Awards $1.45 Million

A King County jury on Thursday morning awarded a former crane operator $1.45 million for injuries he suffered in the deadly collapse of a construction crane in Bellevue 4 ½ years ago.

Jurors found that Seattle-based general contractor Lease Crutcher Lewis and Seattle engineering firm Magnusson Klemencic Associates were negligent and determined both firms were responsible for the injuries suffered by Warren Yeakey in the collapse.

Yeakey was awarded $1.15 million in economic damages as well as $300,000 in noneconomic damages. In addition, the jury awarded his wife, Kristina Yeakey, $55,000 in noneconomic damages.

The amount awarded to the couple was far less than the more than $12 million Yeakey had sought. The Yeakeys said afterward they were disappointed with the amount, saying it wouldn't adequately compensate them for their economic losses.

Jurors had deliberated for about a week before reaching their decision in the monthlong civil trial.

Yeakey had claimed in his lawsuit against the two firms that he still struggles with pain and is unable to work as a result of the November 2006 collapse, which left one man dead.

Lease Crutcher Lewis was the general contractor overseeing the entire operation. Magnusson Klemencic Associates (MKA) was in charge of the structural engineering of the crane.

Yeakey, 39, was operating the 210-foot crane, which was being used to construct the Tower 333 building in downtown Bellevue. It came crashing down on two buildings: Plaza 305 and the Pinnacle BellCentre, where resident Matthew Ammon was killed when the crane struck his apartment.

Investigators determined the collapse was caused by the flawed engineering design of the crane's base.

After an investigation, the state fined Lease Crutcher Lewis and MKA for improper design and construction of the crane. The citation against MKA was later dismissed on appeal.

State lawmakers passed passing tougher standards for crane safety after the collapse.

During opening statements in the trial, attorneys for Lease Crutcher Lewis and MKA blamed each other's company for the collapse. Mark Dynan, who represented Lease Crutcher Lewis, questioned Yeakey's injuries and said Yeakey had returned to light-duty status at work after the collapse.

Matt Renda, who represented the Yeakey family, told jurors that shortly after the crane was installed, workers at the site heard a loud noise from the crane. When inspectors couldn't see a problem the construction continued.

Renda said a closer inspection of the crane should have been conducted.

The family of Ammon, a 31-year-old Microsoft lawyer, reached a financial settlement with Lease Crutcher Lewis and MKA in 2009. The terms of the settlement were not disclosed.