PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — The City of Philadelphia has settled its part of a lawsuit over the remains of victims of the 1985 MOVE bombing.
The City Law Department says that, without admitting liability, the city has agreed to pay an undisclosed amount of money to the plaintiff, Lionell Dotson, who was just 8 years old when the city dropped a bomb on Osage Avenue in West Philadelphia, killing 11 people, including his sisters: 12-year-old Katricia and 14-year-old Zanetta.
At the time, the city returned remains to the family for burial, but in 2021, it was discovered that Katricia’s remains may have been misidentified and sent to the University of Pennsylvania, where they were used for study and fundraising. Lionell sued the city, its former medical examiner and Penn. His attorney, Daniel Hartstein, says Dotson is happy to have settled the city portion of the case.
“My client wants to get justice for his sister. Now, it’s almost 40 years after her death and all the horrible events that followed her death with her remains, so he is far from finished, but it’s a step in the right direction,” Hartstein said.
Dotson’s case against Penn is scheduled to be heard in May.