Verdict in electrocution of Pvt. Van Ryan Marcum Upheld

Verdict in electrocution of soldier upheld

The Associated Press
Posted : Wednesday Feb 27, 2008 10:13:27 EST

LITTLE ROCK — A federal appeals panel on Tuesday upheld a $6.5 million verdict against a private contractor in the death of an Arkansas soldier who was electrocuted when he leaned back against the metal exterior wall of a latrine.

Pvt. Van Ryan Marcum died June 19, 2004, following an exercise at a firing range at Fort Benning, Ga. Marcum’s estate sued The Shaw Group Inc., which was under contract to demolish several abandoned metal latrines at the Army base. Marcum, 21, was from Prescott, Ark.

A three-judge panel of the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Louis turned away The Shaw Group’s requests for a new trial or a ruling that the company was not responsible.

The Shaw Group, based in Baton Rouge, La., argued that it had no duty to have demolished the latrine, noting that the Army had given it an extension for the demolition work.
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http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/02/ap_electrocution_022608/