Metro Assumes Unfamiliar Role as Plaintiff
Metro sues developer over Maryland Orange Line damage
Wednesday, Sep 30, 2009 | Updated 6:15 PM EDT
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WASHINGTON -- Metro is taking someone else to court for a change.
The troubled transit agency is suing a well-known Washington-area developer for $11 million over damage it said the company caused to a section of track on the Orange Line, the Washington Examiner reported.
The suit filed in U.S. District Court in Maryland accuses Jemal's Fairfield Farms LLC, a company run by Douglas Jemal, of piling soil on a corner of its property near the tracks in Prince George's County. The transit agency said the weight caused the ground to shift under the track supports between the Cheverly and Deanwood stations.
The damage has forced trains to run at slower speeds.
Metro often finds itself as the target of lawsuits but is rarely the plaintiff.
Jemal's company hasn't answered the lawsuit yet, but a spokesman said earlier this year that the company didn't believe it had caused the problem.
Copyright Associated Press
