Jury selection begins in lawsuit over fatal New Haven fire from 2019

NEW HAVEN — Jury selection started this week for a civil trial regarding a 2019 fatal fire on West Street that claimed two lives and injured three firefighters.

Michael Randall Sr. and Corey Reed died in the blaze.

A lawsuit brought by both victims’ estates claims the building where the fire happened had illegal units. A number of residents jumped from the burning building, fire officials said at the time. Family members have sued the city, claiming officials failed to follow up on housing violations reported months prior that could have potentially saved lives.

The lawsuit claims representatives of New Haven’s Livable City Initiative visited the home and determined it was being illegally used as a rooming home and did not have smoke detectors or a sprinkler system. The suit states there was a promise to follow up on the reported violations, but no action was taken between that February 2019 visit and the May 2019 fire.

City officials have said the building’s former owner did not show up to eight scheduled appointments with LCI to let inspectors into the building between 2013 and 2014, a few years before the fatal blaze.

The fire marshal’s report said Randall was trapped in his third-floor bedroom by the flames but acted to alert other tenants. Both Randall and Reed died of smoke inhalation and thermal injuries, according to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.

The lawsuit is seeking unspecified damages.

In a statement, New Haven Mayor Justin Elicker offered condolences to the families, but otherwise declined to comment due to ongoing litigation.

“Given the ongoing trial, I can’t comment on the specifics of the case,” he said. “However, the city always participates in the legal process in good faith, and ensuring affordable, safe, high-quality housing has been and will continue to be a top priority for my administration.”

Carey Reilly, an attorney with Koskoff, Koskoff & Bieder representing the families, said the prosecution is prepared to present its evidence in the case.

“In order to protect the plaintiffs in this case and other citizens of New Haven we are looking forward to presenting very powerful evidence demonstrating New Haven and its employees failed to do their jobs,” she said.

In a statement, lead attorney for the estates of the victims Craig Smith of Koskoff, Koskoff & Bieder said city departments had been negligent in 2019 leading to the deaths.

“Michael Randall, Sr. and Corey Reed were beloved members of the New Haven community, and if the city of New Haven had done its job five years ago, they would still be alive today,” he said.

The lawsuit claims that other than getting a promise from the landlord to correct the violations, city officials did not take any other action and the property was not reinspected.

“We hope that in holding the city accountable through this trial, we can protect all New Haven families from experiencing such devastating, preventable loss,” Smith said.