Fort Detrick Seeks Dismissal Of Wrongful Death Lawsuit

FREDERICK (AP) -- The government is asking a federal judge to dismiss a wrongful death lawsuit involving groundwater pollution from Fort Detrick in Frederick.

The Frederick News-Post (bit.ly/1Qsucve) reports that U.S. Attorney for Maryland Rod Rosenstein filed the document Monday in U.S. District Court in Baltimore.

He says the government has no particular duty to respond to hazardous substances and that the Army can use its own judgment in deciding whether to clean it up.

A group of current and former Frederick residents filed the $750 million, class-action lawsuit in August. They say Fort Detrick's failure to clean up contaminated soil and groundwater caused the cancer-related illnesses and deaths of their relatives.

A state public health investigation in 2011 found no statistically significant evidence of cancer clusters within 2 miles of Fort Detrick.

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Information from: The Frederick (Md.) News-Post, http://www.fredericknewspost.com