Kin, Camden settle suits in boys' deaths in trunk

The families of three boys found dead in the trunk of a car in Camden in 2005 have reached a $2.25 million settlement with the city.

The boys - Anibal Cruz, 11, and Daniel Agosto, 6, of Camden, and Jesstin Pagan, 5, of Mount Ephraim - were reported missing June 22.

During a search that involved dozens of officers, helicopters, bloodhounds, and boats, no one checked the trunk of a Toyota Camry in Anibal's Cramer Hill yard, where the boys had been playing. A relative found their bodies there two days later when he went looking for jumper cables.

The families filed lawsuits alleging police negligence. In particular they pointed to Lt. Nicole Martin, who was one of the first to respond and failed to follow police procedure in searching the yard.

"Lt. Martin admitted her vehicle search was incomplete, in that she only flashed her flashlight in the interior and did not open the car doors," according to a filing by lawyer Paul Brandes, who represented Anibal's mother, Elba Cruz.

After Martin was called to investigate a lead that the boys might be at a nearby pizza shop, she never finished searching the car, the document said. The boys would have been alive in the trunk for several more hours, it said.

No one heeded evidence that the boys had been playing in the car, including that their shoes were found inside. The lawsuits also cited a lack of direction during the search.

Two command centers gave searchers conflicting commands, said lawyer Andrew Rossetti, who represented Daniel Agosto's parents, Iris and David.

Rossetti said it was "very clear" in depositions that "rival groups" within the department were trying to call the shots that day.

The searching officers were "deficiently trained" and the department marked by a "culture of indifference," Brandes' filing said.

Attempts to contact Robert Corrales, spokesman for the mayor, and Police Chief Scott Thomson were unsuccessful.

Each family will receive $750,000, with about 30 percent paid to their attorneys.

Allen Littlefield, who represented Jesstin Pagan's mother, Jessica, said that "nothing will replace her child" but that the families hoped the lawsuits would help prevent similar tragedies.

The attorneys had hired a company to run mock trials in part to test wheter a jury would place blame on the families. The adults were the subject of harsh criticism in online media forums after the deaths.

Rossetti said one of the biggest benefits to his clients was hearing that the mock juries did not fault them.