In the lawsuit filed in 2019, Gayla Lutyk and her attorney say town workers negligence caused her daughter, 30-year-old Ashley O’Connor, to be trapped in the sand in 2017. The lawsuit alleged that workers didn’t investigate whether anyone was on the beach before twice driving a tractor over the Plano woman as it covered holes. The suit sought $1 million in damages.
Ocean City officials had stated that a medical examiner ruled O’Connor’s death accidental, caused by asphyxia due to suffocation.
Edward Brown, attorney for Lutyk, declined to discuss the case when contacted Tuesday. Bruce Bright, who represented Ocean City, couldn’t be reached for a comment.