Widow of Man Killed in D.C. Fire Truck Crash Celebrates $13.5 Million Judgment

NOTE: This article was updated at 6:10pm on March 21, 2024 to include comments from the Metropolitan Police Department and the D.C. Office of the Attorney General.

In February, a D.C. jury awarded more than $13.5 million to the family of DeAngelo Green, a man killed in 2018 when a D.C. fire truck sped through a red light at the intersection of 12th Street and Rhode Island Avenue in Northeast and struck his car. 

T’Anita Coles-Green, Green’s widow and mother to his six children, said the road to victory wasn’t easy. In addition to the emotional toll of her husband’s death, she dealt with what she described as the D.C. government’s attempt to tarnish his name. 

“I knew who my husband was. They tried to make it like his life didn’t matter,” Coles-Green said. “His death took a toll on everyone’s lives,” she continued. “I wanted to speak out during court. It was traumatic to hear the way they tried to assassinate his character.” 

In 2019, Coles-Green filed a lawsuit against the District. Per Bill Lightfoot, the family’s attorney, getting to a jury trial would take years, due to what he described as D.C. Fire and Emergency Medical Services’ (DCFEMS) delay of releasing the dashcam footage from March 9, 2018. 

A Metropolitan Police Department spokesperson told The Informer that the fire truck dashcam footage recovered by investigators at the scene of the crash was not operational.

During the trial to determine damages, the D.C. Office of the Attorney General (OAG) cited a toxicology report that said Green had PCP in his system at the time of the crash. The government’s attorneys argued that Green’s past drug use and incarceration could diminish the amount of support he could provide his children, and ultimately the amount to be awarded. 

Attorneys later said that the D.C. Office of the Medical Examiner destroyed the late Green’s blood sample that it tested for drugs. In court, Lightfoot questioned whether the D.C. government actually tested Green’s blood. 

Ultimately, D.C. Superior Court Judge Yvonne Williams threw out the toxicology report, saying that it didn’t indicate that Green took the drug on the day of the crash. The jury later ruled in favor of Green’s family on the basis of what Lightfoot described as lost parental guidance. 

“Deangelo wasn’t a stay-at-home dad, but he took care of them,” Lightfoot told The Informer. He represented Coles-Green alongside attorney Allyson Kitchel. “Dressing them, feeding them, taking them to school, doing extra events,” Lightfoot continued. “For a case of this magnitude, the city took the attitude that they wanted the people in the District  to decide what would happen. The people have spoken through the jury verdict. The elected officials should pay the family.” 

An OAG spokesperson, responding to an inquiry about the possibility of an appeal, said the office is exploring its legal options.

At the time of his death, Green served as a maintenance worker at So Others Might Eat, also known as SOME. The ages of his four female and two male children currently span between 8 and 21 years old.

When the D.C. fire truck plowed head-on into Green’s car, the car hit another vehicle and a pregnant woman crossing the street. Evidence later presented in court showed that the driver of the fire truck violated departmental policies that allow fire truck drivers to run red lights only if they slow down or stop beforehand. 

Coles-Green said that, since her husband’s death, she’s struggled to provide for her children on one income. She told The Informer that time constraints preclude her from working overtime. There’s also the issue of providing emotional support to the young women who lost their father figure and the young men who looked forward to learning some of the trades that their father mastered. 

Despite the circumstances, Coles-Green expressed some satisfaction with the outcome. 

“No [dollar] amount can amount to a life, but it will be able to give DeAngelo’s children the life they wanted,” Coles-Green said. “DeAngelo worked hard to make sure they were going to where they needed to be for their future. They will be able to go to the schools they want and have the financial support they lost.”