Lawsuit filed in Cahokia boy's crushing death

CAHOKIA -- The grandmother of 13-year-old Ryan Hennemann of Cahokia, who was crushed to death by a dump truck April 25 has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the truck driver, his employer, and the quarry that filled the truck with gravel.

Attorney Tom Keefe filed the lawsuit Wednesday on behalf of Ryan's grandmother, Kathryn Lowe.

The lawsuit says Falling Springs Quarry Co. loaded James T. Griffin's truck with 33,180 pounds of gravel and refused to remove some when Griffin complained it was overloaded.

Griffin, who drove for the J.& C. Construction Co., later offered Ryan and a 15-year-old friend $5 apiece to help him unload the truck. While unloading, the dump bed of the truck tipped onto Ryan, killing him.

None of the defendants would immediately comment on the lawsuit.