Judge dismisses wrongful death lawsuit over road washout

BISMARCK, N.D. – A federal judge has dismissed a wrongful death lawsuit against the Bureau of Indian Affairs and Standing Rock Sioux Tribe stemming from a road washout nearly three years ago that killed two people.

Heavy rain in July 2019 washed away a section of roadway on the Standing Rock reservation.

In the early morning before sunrise, two motorists were killed when they unknowingly drove their vehicles into a deep culvert where the road washed away.

The victims’ families argued the washout could have been avoided if the BIA has adhered to road maintenance standards it had adopted.