Judge ends Katrina flooding lawsuits against feds

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NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Dozens of lawsuits seeking damages fromthe federal government for Hurricane
Katrina-related levee failures andflooding in the New Orleans area are over.U.S. District JudgeStanwood
Duval Jr. has dismissed the cases. The move comes more than ayear after a federal appeals court overturned
his ruling that held theU.S. Army Corps of Engineers liable for flooding caused by laxmaintenance of a
shipping channel.Duval has also dismissed aparallel lawsuit against a contractor. It claimed excavation
workweakened flood walls in New Orleans’ Industrial Canal. Duval entered theorders to dismiss the cases on
Dec. 20.More than 500,000residents, businesses and governments filed claims against the Corps.People in
southern Louisiana have long taken for granted that theflooding in the wake of the 2005 storm was a man-made
disaster — onecaused specifically by the corps — and they have wanted the agency topay up for lost homes and
property.The corps claimed immunityfrom suits related to decisions on flood-control projects, includingmost
levees, based on a 1928 federal law. But lawyers tried to getaround that by claiming the agency had been
negligent in maintainingnavigation channels, including the Mississippi River Gulf Outlet.Thatchannel, dug in
the 1960s and closed after the hurricane, funneledKatrina’s storm surge into parts of the city. Overall,
thousands ofhomes were destroyed, about 1,400 people died in the flood and much ofthe city was left under
water.Duval had ruled in 2009 that thecorps was liable for the flooding of New Orleans’ Lower 9th
Wardneighborhood and St. Bernard Parish because the agency failed toproperly maintain the channel, allowing
protective marshland to washaway.The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals initially agreed with thatdecision in
March 2012. But in September, a three-judge panel reversedits earlier opinion, saying the new ruling
"completely insulates thegovernment from liability."The ruling could make it extremely difficult
to force the government to pay damages for future mishaps.Underfederal law, the government cannot be sued
over actions based "onconsiderations of public policy," the appeals panel wrote. The
corps’decisions regarding the shipping channel fall under that protection, thejudges wrote.Copyright 2013
The Associated Press. All rightsreserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten
orredistributed.

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