City will pay nearly $1.4 million to settle lawsuit alleging falling branch hurt mother and 6-year-old child

The Long Beach City Council has agreed to pay just under $1.4 million to settle a lawsuit alleging a mother and her young child were injured when a tree branch fell on them during a birthday party at Whaley Park.

The mother was walking under the tree with her 6-year-old on June 26, 2021, when a large tree limb suddenly detached and landed on top of them, according to a complaint filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court.

The impact knocked the mother unconscious and caused injuries to both her and her child, according to the complaint.

To this day, the mother has a herniated disc in her neck that will require surgery, has post-concussive syndrome and suffers from cognitive issues, said Kelly Dingwell, an attorney representing the family. The child, meanwhile, still has scarring on her legs, she added. 

The lawsuit alleges that Long Beach and its contracted tree-cutting service failed to maintain the health of the vegetation at Whaley Park.

“This tree branch fell during a child’s birthday party at a park,” Dingwell said. “This party was permitted, they paid the city to have this party and this tree branch fell within a few minutes of a piñata that was not hung on the branch that fell.”

Had the branch fallen five minutes earlier, “it would’ve crushed 12 kids,” Dingwell said.

On Tuesday, the City Council agreed during its closed session to pay $1.375 million to settle the case.

Deputy City Attorney Howard Russell said in an email to the Long Beach Post that the settlement, which was reached through a professional mediator, “allows the parties to avoid the risk and additional expenses associated with taking the case to trial, and it assists the Plaintiffs as they continue to recover from the serious injuries they suffered.”

Russell added that there is “no admission of liability” on the city’s part.

Tree maintenance has been an ongoing concern in the city.

Dingwell alleged Long Beach not only knew about the overall tree health issues throughout the city but had specific notice that a set of trees at Whaley Park, including the one involved in the incident, could pose a risk to parkgoers. 

The tree has since been removed, Dingwell said, and the city has tried to make parks safer by doing things like allocating money for tree health issues. 

But, “from our perspective, the city of Long Beach is lucky this wasn’t worse,” she added. 

Editor’s note: This story has been updated to correct a reference to Whaley Park’s location and add details from the plaintiffs’ attorney.