SCRANTON – The representatives of the estate of a migrant farm worker have filed suit against the man's employers after a fight caused injuries that contributed to his death.
Victor Pozar, co-administrator of the estate of deceased Juan Pozar-Felipe, and Jaime Pozar, co-administrator of the estate of Juan Pozar-Felipe, filed a complaint on Aug. 25 in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania against Strathmeyer Landscape Development Co., CLS Group Inc., et al. citing the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act.
According to the complaint, Pozar-Felipe worked for the defendants' Christmas tree business in York and was a citizen of Mexico. The suit states the defendants provided housing to the plaintiff and that on Sept. 9, 2015, two other workers in the housing were intoxicated and began to fight. The suit states Pozar-Felipe attempted to stop the fight, was pushed and hit his head on a pole. Pozar-Felipe died 10 days later from the injuries, the suit states.
The plaintiffs holds Strathmeyer Landscape Development Co., CLS Group Inc., et al. responsible because the defendants allegedly failed to provide housing that met the substantive minimum health or safety standards.
The plaintiffs seek judgment against the defendants in an amount that exceeds $75,000 plus interest, punitive damages, court costs and any further relief the court grants. They are represented by David L. Woloshin, Dina S. Ronsayro and Jordan Schlossberg of Astor Weiss Kaplan & Mandel LLP in Philadelphia.
U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania case number 1:17-cv-01527-YK