A major wrongful death civil suit that could force Vero Beach condominium buildings and their management companies to reexamine procedures for allowing EMTs rapid access in case of emergencies is now set to go forward in September. Judge Cynthia Cox last week signed an order giving the plaintiff’s attorney, Dane Ullian of the Gould Cooksey Fennell law firm, until September to find and certify new expert witness on secured building access. Cox had struck the plaintiff’s first proposed expert witness because he didn’t have enough experience, but at a pretrial motion hearing, the judge allowed the survivors suing for damages more time to locate a new expert to give testimony. She then postponed the start date of the scheduled jury trial from June 16 until September. Wrongful death civil suits often hinge on what kind of testimony from expert witnesses the jury will be allowed to hear. At issue in the case is any civil liability for the 2022 death of Thomas Morgan, a resident of the Bay Island Club condominium building on Ocean Drive across from the Conn Beach boardwalk. On Sept. 18, 2022, Morgan and a family friend were having dinner at his home when a piece of steak became lodged in his airway and he began to choke. His dining companion called 911 and paramedics were at the building within five minutes, but the suit alleges that the paramedics were delayed for at least three minutes gaining access to the secured building. Eventually they did get in and were able to resuscitate Morgan, but he had been without oxygen too long and had lost nearly all brain function. He was given only palliative care and, after life support mechanisms were turned off, he died four days later. Morgan’s widow, Dara, and their son Hunter, who was a minor at the time, are suing the Bay Island Club, Inc., condo association and the building’s management company, Elliott Merrill, for negligence and are demanding “all economic and non-economic damages allowable by law.” The suit alleges that Elliott Merrial breached its duties to the condo association and its residents “by maintaining a secured common entrance that lacked a reasonable and compliant means for emergency responder access to the property.” Florida law mandates that condominium buildings with secured entrances provide emergency access to first responders to be used in case of emergencies. Virtually all local condo buildings do this with a device known as a Knox Box, manufactured by the Knox company of Phoenix. It is usually positioned right next to the service entrance to the building, and every local fire department has a key to those Knox Boxes. Inside the Knox Box are other keys to operate the building’s elevators and provide access to the electrical equipment room. That system worked perfectly last month after a minor fire caused by burned toast at another condo building along A1A set off a smoke alarm. EMTs gained access to the building through the keys found in the Knox Box, gained access to the electrical room, and turned off the fire alarm once the source of the smoke had been located. The Bay Island Club condo building did have a Knox Box, as required by law, but according to the plaintiff’s lawyer, it was in an “odd location” which made it difficult for the paramedics to gain instant access. Ullian has demanded a trial by jury and is expected to ask for substantial awards for Morgan’s surviving family members. The suit alleges that Mogan’s widow Dara has experienced “mental pain and suffering and has lost her husband’s support, companionship and protection, while Hunter also experienced mental pain and suffering “and the loss of his father’s support, services, companionship, instruction and guidance.” The plaintiff’s attorney also asks that the widow and the son be awarded “the net accumulations which Morgan would have acquired had he lived out his normal life,” in other words, his expected future earnings from his lucrative software consultant’s job. Asked if there is any possibility of a settlement on the courthouse steps before the trial starts, Ullian said “you never know, but I consider it highly unlikely in this case,” adding he fully expects the case to go to trial. Morgan was 62 at the time of his death and was still working as an accounting software consultant. A graduate of Penn State University where he played collegiate soccer, Morgan had worked in Georgia and Florida. Morgan was an organ donor. “While Tom’s family didn’t receive the miracle they prayed for (his recovery), five individuals did receive a miracle as Tom as an organ donor,” according to his obituary posted by Legacy. Condolences on his passing poured in from many different locations, including from Mexico, where he had worked on an SAP project in the middle of the Covid pandemic and was well remembered for his kindness, consideration and expert knowledge. The Bay Island Club condo building, originally built in 1973, has received mostly positive reviews on real estate websites, which call it an ideal location with great ocean views, especially for beachgoers.