Crop-Duster, Port Sued Again In Midair Collision Former Cadet, Family File Third Claim In Ephrata Crash

Lawsuits are flying in the wake of a 1993 midair collision between a Grant County crop-duster and an airplane piloted by a Civil Air Patrol cadet.

The latest in a trio of suits was filed July 21 in U.S. District Court in Spokane by the former cadet, Devon Coleman of Olympia.

Coleman and his parents, Dan and Ingrid, claim crop-duster pilot Martin Shaw caused the Aug. 1 collision at the Ephrata airport.

Shaw was spraying pesticides when his Gruman Ag Cat collided with a Cessna A150L being flown by Coleman.

Grant County Port District No. 9, which runs the airport, also is named as a defendant.

Coleman, then 16, was attending a Civil Air Patrol camp at the time of the crash. He was seriously injured and still requires medical treatment, according to the suit.

He and his parents want Shaw to pay undisclosed medical bills and punitive damages. They have a similar claim pending in Grant County Superior Court.

The Colemans say Martin was flying in “a negligent manner,” while Devon Coleman was “safe and prudent.”

Shaw also was hurt, suffering several broken bones and a torn intestine. His plane was destroyed.

Last year, he sued the U.S. government for nearly $4 million, claiming federal officials who were running the Air Patrol camp did not adequately supervise Coleman.

Martin said camp organizers failed “to maintain a proper lookout for other aircraft” and operated an aircraft without “due regard for the safety of others.”

That suit is pending.

In court documents, government officials deny responsibility for the crash and say Shaw was at least partly at fault.

, DataTimes