Parents sue Oakland over teen’s tree-limb death near Lake Merritt

The beach at the gazebo at Lake Merritt in Oakland, Calif., during a warm sunny day on Tuesday, July 2, 2013. The beach at the gazebo at Lake Merritt in Oakland, Calif., during a warm sunny day on Tuesday, July 2, 2013. Photo: Liz Hafalia, The Chronicle Photo: Liz Hafalia, The Chronicle Image 1 of / 7 Caption Close Parents sue Oakland over teen’s tree-limb death near Lake Merritt 1 / 7 Back to Gallery

The parents of a 16-year-old boy whose skull was crushed by a falling tree limb at Lake Merritt sued the city of Oakland for wrongful death Monday, saying city workers knew the tree was decayed but failed to remove it or warn the public.

Jack Lewis, an 11th-grader and member of the rowing team at Oakland Technical High School, was climbing the tree to join some of his friends who were holding a birthday party last December when the branch he was holding snapped. He fell to the ground, and the branch, described in the lawsuit as 20 feet long and a foot in diameter, landed on his head. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

The tree, on the east side of the lake near Children’s Fairyland park, was a popular climbing site for teens who sat on the limb for a view of the waters at sunset, said John Winer, a lawyer for the boy’s parents, Michael and Lisa Lewis.

Their suit said city inspectors had previously removed the top of the tree, had seen its diseased condition and had known that youngsters climbed on it. Inspectors had marked the tree in blue, the same marking used later on the stumps of nearby trees that were cut down, Winer said.

“Nonetheless, the city neither removed nor warned the public about the tree,” said the lawsuit, filed in Alameda County Superior Court.

Under Oakland’s policy, the family’s lawyers said, after inspectors became aware of the dangers, the tree should have been cut down and carried off within 24 hours. Winer said the city had apparently marked the tree for removal.

In a statement accompanying the suit, Denice Britton, described as an expert arborist, said the tree “was obviously decayed prior to its breaking. It may likely have been dead.”

She said she also found other trees nearby with extensive decay, and one next to the site of the fatal accident that was “leaning and very likely to break, especially were someone to climb onto it.”

The suit seeks unspecified damages for funeral expenses and emotional distress to the parents for the loss of their child’s love and companionship.

Bob Egelko is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: begelko@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @egelko