Woman Claims Low-Hanging Power Lines Electrocuted Her Son

A woman from Jefferson County, Texas has filed a personal injury suit against Entergy Texas on behalf of her minor son, claiming that a low-hanging power line caused him to suffer an electrical shock.

According to the suit filed by Tammy Barnette Becker on January 28 in Texas’ Jefferson County District Court, her son, Brandon Reid Barnette, was working on top of a fence in his backyard on October 24 and lost his balance, instinctively reaching his hands up in order to regain his balance. But his hands came into contact with the power line installed by Entergy and he was shocked.

Becker claims that the incident caused Barnette to suffer serious and permanent injuries, physical impairment, and disfigurement. She also claims he experienced great physical mental pain, suffering, and anguish.

The suit alleges negligence on the part of Entergy Texas for allowing a power line to hang low about a six-foot residential fence, failure to adhere to power line height safety standards, failure to respond to requests to raise the power line’s height, failure to inspect the premises in order to discover the dangerous condition, failure to correct the dangerous condition, and failure to warn.