Massachusetts Family Sues Following Boy’s Escalator Death

June 10, 2011

The family of a 4-year-old Massachusetts boy who died after falling from a mall escalator has filed a wrongful death lawsuit.

Mark DiBona of Dudley died March 12 after falling from a second-floor escalator in a Sears store at the Auburn Mall. Authorities have said he fell after slipping through a gap between the escalator and a barrier.

The suit filed Wednesday in Worcester Superior Court names Sears, mall owner Simon Property Group Inc., the escalator’s manufacturer and a construction company as defendants.

The suit seeks unspecified damages.

A Sears spokeswoman said in an email that the company does not comment on pending litigation. A Simon Property group spokesman says he has no comment.

Following Mark’s death, two state inspectors were fired for failing to detect the gap that was wider than permitted.