Rachel Sadon
Photo by Adam Fagen.
The family of a man whose body was found at the Judiciary Square Metro station is suing the transit agency, alleging that he lay dying or dead for four days before employees found him.
According to the lawsuit’s account, Okiemute Whiteru, a 35-year-old attorney from Southeast, was going up an escalator on October 19, 2013 when he lost his balance and fell onto the platform. He then fell backward and dropped another eight feet. The suit alleges that the fall was seen by WMATA employees and captured on surveillance video, but they didn’t investigate.
Whiteru’s body wasn’t discovered until October 23. By that time had succumbed to injuries related to the fall.
At the time, WMATA spokesperson Dan Stessel said that Whiteru apparently fell off of a wall on the side of the station and fell under the platform level below. MPD ruled out foul play, and the official cause of death was ruled accidental by blunt force trauma.
The National Law Journal’s Zoe Tillman first reported the suit. Whiteru’s family is seeking $25 million.
