Judge removes himself from fire lawsuit against City of Beatrice

BEATRICE – A lawsuit filed against the City of Beatrice nearly a year ago…from a fire  that broke out August 4^th of 2021….will now be heard by a new judge.  

Gage County District Judge Rick Schreiner has recused himself from the case over a possible conflict of interest with the plaintiffs in the suit.   Saline County District Judge David Bargen will now preside over the lawsuit brought by Joe and Manalle Armstrong against the City of Beatrice.

The couple alleges negligence on the part of Beatrice city and rural fire departments in responding to an early morning fire that destroyed the family’s home, south of Beatrice.   The Armstrong’s are seeking $2.49 million in damages for the fire, which did not cause injuries but destroyed the home and its contents.

The lawsuit contends that the city and rural fire departments breached their duties by delaying deployment of resources to the fire and failing to avail themselves of water contained in nearby ponds and a swimming pool at the home.

The City denies the allegations, saying the cause of damage was negligence of the plaintiffs and that the plaintiffs haven’t been damaged to the extent alleged, among other things.

The fire, which drew members of several departments to the scene….began in a garage area of the home, with investigators tracing the cause of the blaze to a battery malfunction.

A pre-trial conference in the lawsuit has not yet been scheduled.  Both the City of Beatrice and Beatrice Rural Fire are named as defendants in the lawsuit.  A status hearing was held this week involving attorneys for both sides, during which Judge Schreiner announced his intention to recuse himself from the case.