FONDA - The mother of a 15-year-old Fort Plain girl who was killed a year ago in Tioga County when a pistol went off accidentally is suing the boy who was holding the gun and the man who was driving the car in which the shooting occurred.
The civil suit was filed in state Supreme Court in Montgomery County by Gloversville attorney Robert Abdella on behalf of Ann Miklic, administrator of the estate of Naomi Miklic, who was fatally shot Jan. 31, 2011, by Justin F. Dibble, 18, of Cherry Valley. The suit alleges negligence and wrongful death against Dibble and the driver, Isaiah L. Bowen, 28, of Cherry Valley. The amount of damages is not specified, but it "exceeds the jurisdictional limits of all lower courts," according to the lawsuit document.
"We're trying to secure some remuneration for the family," Abdella said. "The criminal aspect of the case was handled by the Tioga County Court system."
According to the state Department of Corrections website, Bowen is serving a term of 22 months to five and a half years in the Altona Correctional Facility in Clinton County after pleading guilty to criminal possession of a weapon. Dibble is serving a term of two and a half to four years in Comstock Correctional Facility in Washington County after pleading guilty to criminally negligent homicide and attempted criminal possession of a weapon.
Miklic, Dibble and an unidentified female minor were passengers in Bowen's car. The four reportedly were on their way to Pennsylvania when the shooting occurred in Owego.
Miklic was sitting in the front passenger seat and Dibble was in the back seat. Dibble was holding a .38 caliber pistol, one of several loaded guns Tioga County Sheriff's deputies said were found in the car. The gun discharged, and the bullet tore through the back of the passenger seat and struck Miklic in the shoulder. Miklic was taken to Wilson Hospital in Johnson City, where she later died.
"Our claim alleges negligence on the part of both [Dibble and Bowen]," Abdella said. "There were a number of guns in the vehicle, and one [gun] was being handled by an individual in the back seat. The driver was aware that the guns were in the vehicle. He was older. Clearly, he was negligent."
The lawsuit states that both Dibble and Bowen had "a duty to exercise reasonable care." Bowen "failed in his duty ... by negligently and carelessly allowing his vehicle to become dangerous to his passengers" by having a number of loaded weapons in the car. Dibble was negligent because he was "mishandling a weapon he knew to be loaded," according to the lawsuit.
John R. Becker can be reached at montco@leaderherald.com.