The mother of a 3-year-old boy who drowned in a grease trap at the University Avenue Tim Hortons in July has filed notices of claim with the city of Rochester and Monroe County.

The four-page notice is a legally required precursor to a lawsuit, giving the city and county notice that a formal lawsuit may be brought against them.

Lori Monaghan, attorney for Tenitia Cullum, the mother of 3-year-old Bryce Raynor, said state law requires that government bodies be formally notified within 90 days of an incident that an actual lawsuit may be filed in the future.

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The notice alleges the city and county are responsible for Bryce's wrongful death and were negligent in their oversight of the Tim Hortons grease trap by allowing a "hazardous, defective and dangerous condition to occur." The notice also includes claims for emotional distress, conscious pain and suffering, and pre-impact terror.

Bryce died on July 15, drowned inside a grease trap outside the restaurant where his mother worked. The grease trap lid, in a grassy patch just outside the Tim Hortons back door, had not been bolted in place. As his mother was grabbing trash bags from near the back door, Bryce stepped on the lid, which swung open like a trash can lid and allowed him to drop inside the trap. The lid then swung closed, trapping and concealing him inside.

Democrat and Chronicle reporting found there are no state or federal laws anywhere in the country that require secondary protection devices — typically a grid of plastic or strapping that would prevent a child from falling in even an open grease trap.

Cullum is seeking unspecified damages.

City and county officials said they could not comment on pending litigation.

MCDERMOT@Gannett.com