The Iowa Supreme Court has upheld a lower court ruling that the D-N-R can’t be sued for a boating accident on Storm Lake. The accident happened on Memorial Day weekend in 2010 as Jamie Laass of South Sioux City, Nebraska and her four kids were riding in a speedboat driven by her boyfriend Harry Foote. Foote was doing around 30-miles-an-hour in the boat when it hit a submerged dredge pipe and flipped over. Laass’ 10-year-old son David died in the accident.

Laass filed a lawsuit against the D-N-R. The D-N-R lawsuit was dismissed by the district court based on several issues including what’s called the public duty doctrine. It says the government has the duty to inform the public at large about safety issues, but is not liable to individuals.

The Iowa Supreme Court upheld that district court ruling. Court records say a lawsuit against the city, county and lake improvement association in the case was settled for one-point-two million dollars.

(Radio Iowa)