GWINN, MI— The Michigan Supreme Court has heard arguments in a dispute over whether Gwinn Area Community Schools is liable for the death of a 4-year-old girl who was accidentally killed in 2015.
The family of Amarah Filizetti is trying to persuade the Supreme Court to reverse the opinion of the Michigan Court of Appeals. Amarah was the daughter of a cheerleading coach at Gwinn High School. She died when a 325-pound panel fell on her in the gym. Staff were in the process of putting the panel in place to shield a portable stage.
Schools typically have immunity in personal injury lawsuits. The appeals court ruled in favor of Gwinn, saying leaning a stage cover panel against the wall before it fell doesn’t fit an exception.
