$227 Million Settlement for 19 Victims of the 22nd and Market Street Demolition Collapse

On June 5, 2013, a four-story building at 22nd and Market Streets in Center City Philadelphia was being demolished under the direction of Richard Basciano, a New York real estate speculator who owned the property. Contractors hired for the job failed to shore up an exterior brick wall before removing adjacent structural support. With no warning, the wall toppled onto the Salvation Army thrift store next door during regular business hours.

Seven people were killed: Anne Bryan, 24, an art student; Mary Simpson, 24, an audio engineer; Juanita Harmon, 75, a retired secretary; Roseline Conteh, 52, a nurse from Sierra Leone who was shopping; Bobor Davis, 68, a store employee; Kimberly Finnegan, 35, a cashier; and Danny Johnson, 59, a truck driver who died from his injuries three weeks later. Twelve more people were seriously injured. One survivor required the amputation of her lower body and underwent roughly 30 surgeries, with projected lifetime medical costs exceeding $50 million.

The civil case was handled by Robert J. Mongeluzzi, Jeffrey P. Goodman, and Steven G. Wigrizer of what was then Saltz Mongeluzzi Barrett and Bendesky. Named defendants included Basciano, the Salvation Army (which owned the building being demolished and the adjacent store), architect Plato A. Marinakos Jr., demolition contractor Griffin Campbell, and excavator operator Sean Benschop. Campbell and Benschop faced separate criminal convictions for their roles in the collapse.

The civil trial in Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas before Judge M. Teresa Sarmina ran for approximately 17 weeks, making it the longest civil trial in Philadelphia court history. After hearing evidence through the liability phase, a jury deliberated for roughly four hours before returning a verdict finding the defendants liable on January 31, 2017.

Before the damages phase concluded, the parties reached a $227 million settlement on February 8, 2017. Basciano contributed $27 million and the Salvation Army contributed $200 million. The settlement was described at the time as the largest personal injury payout in Pennsylvania court history. An arbitrator was appointed to determine individual allocations among the 19 plaintiffs.