Officials sue estate of man who shot at assessor, killed himself in courthouse
Officials who helped tackle a man who fired a shot at an Iowa tax assessor and then killed himself at the Jackson County courthouse in 2014 are pursuing individual lawsuits against his estate.
The gunman was former Maquoketa City Manager Francis “Gus” Glaser, 71, and the incident took place during a local government meeting on Sept. 9, 2014. The plaintiffs, Larry “Buck” Koos, Larry McDevitt and Steve Flynn, were meeting in their capacity as county supervisors. They allege in their complaints, which were filed in August, that Glaser also waved his gun at them. They seek compensatory and punitive damages for “abnormally dangerous activity” and emotional distress, according to the Dubuque Telegraph Herald and the Quad City Times.
The woman Glaser fired at, Deb Lane, was a county auditor at the time. Lane and Glaser had previously clashed over a longstanding property tax dispute, the Telegraph Herald reports.
Koos injured his hand when a glass door shattered as he and McDevitt helped tackle Glaser as he was about to follow Lane out of the room, news reports said. Glaser killed himself in the struggle, and Lane was not injured by the gunfire, according to the Telegraph Herald.
Koos and McDevitt still serve on the county board of supervisors. Flynn, who formerly served on the board, has since moved out of state.
“I have heard the rumors there is no money in the estate, but my attorney has not informed me whether or not there is money in the estate. I just don’t know,” Koos told the Quad City Times. “I guess I will just have to wait to see what happens.”
Attorney David Pillers represents Glaser’s estate. He filed answers in December denying the allegations in the complaints, but did not respond to the Quad City Times’ request for comment.
See also:
ABAJournal.com: “Courthouse shooter is tackled by county official, dies at scene”
ABAJournal.com: “Chief judge wants more security at courthouse where shooting occurred during government meeting”
