By ASSOCIATED PRESS/Nicole Walton
Crandon, WI – The lone survivor and parents of four young people killed in a shooting rampage by an off-duty deputy have filed a wrongful death lawsuit seeking millions of dollars. Forest County Deputy Sheriff Tyler Peterson killed his one-time girlfriend and five others on October 7, 2007, before killing himself. The lawsuit filed in Forest County Circuit Court names Crandon police chief John Dennee, Forest County Sheriff Keith van Cleve, and their insurance companies as defendants. The plaintiffs include the lone survivor, Charlie Neitzel.
Crandon and Forest County earlier denied claims from Neitzel and the families seeking more than $5 million in damages. That opened the door for the civil lawsuit. The suit claims authorities knew Peterson had a history of violence and wrongly gave him access to weapons.