EVERETT, Wash. — The family of a 13-year-old who was killed when he crashed his bike into a metal cable is suing the city of Everett, claiming that the city knew it was an illegally-installed danger.
On May 2, the boy was riding his electric bicycle on 5th Ave West, near a cul-de-sac, when he took a shortcut through a yard, but didn’t see a braided cable strung up between bollards along the grass.
He biked right into it, and his neck took the brunt of the force.
“He ran into it and it actually cut his vocal cords. He went back running as fast as he could without being able to catch any air, back to his friends, he wanted to get their attention to call 911 and then he ended up collapsing,” family friend Shantel Jenks told KIRO 7 in May.
The teen died at Harborview Medical Center several days after the accident.
The cable was stretched between private land and a public right-of-way.
Now, the family of the child is suing the city of Everett and the current and former property owner where the incident occurred.
According to the suit, several days after the teen’s death, the Mexican Consulate warned the city that another child could get hurt on the cable in a similar way.
The cable was taken down.
However, according to the suit, the city was aware of the cable and its potential dangers for at least a year. In April 2024, a GMC truck jumped the curb while being chased by police and brought the cable down. The property owners replaced the cable.
“Despite having knowledge of the cable for over a year before the subject of the collision, defendant CITY OF EVERETT did nothing to ensure that the hazard was removed and did nothing to ensure that the [property owners] abstained from placing such hazards on city property or public right of way,” the suit said.
“Defendant CITY OF EVERETT had actual and/or constructive notice, that the aforesaid unreasonably dangerous cable had been placed across city property and the public right of way, and that the [property owners] were making use of city property in this way," the suit also said.
KIRO 7 reached out to the city of Everett for a statement:
"Because this involves pending litigation, we are unable to provide comment at this time."
The suit was filed on Sept. 25. The city and the two property owners have 20 days to respond.
©2025 Cox Media Group
