A court has refused to dismiss a lawsuit against Chautauqua County over a 2024 death at the county garbage station on Webster Road.

State Supreme Court Justice Grace Hanlon also ruled that a countersuit by the county cannot be combined with the case, so the two filings will be considered separately.

William Bartoo was accidentally struck July 11, 2024, while depositing garbage into the pit at the county facility. He died from his injuries on July 30. Bartoo’s son, as administrator of his estate, sued the county.

Chautauqua County subsequently filed a complaint against Sharon Bartoo, who was driving the vehicle that struck her husband.

That means Sharon Bartoo is a plaintiff in one case and a defendant in another. Hanlon ruled the cases can’t get consolidated. “Courts have consistently held that in order to avoid jury confusion the actions should not be consolidated if that results in a party being both plaintiff and defendant,” the judge wrote.

Chautauqua County also sought dismissal of the Bartoo suit on grounds that a so-called “loss of consortium” action is not available in a wrongful death case. “Consortium” is a legal term referring to the right of association and companionship with one’s spouse.

Hanlon granted that it was not available for the period after William Bartoo’s death — but ruled that it is for the 19 days between the accident and his passing.

“The plaintiff has properly pled a cause of action seeking recovery for consortium during the period of the decedent’s conscious pain and suffering,” Hanlon wrote.