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Monday, March 18, 2024
March 18, 2024

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Slain kidnapping suspect’s sister files claim vs. FBI

Authorities said man abducted 16-year-old after killing her mother, brother

The Columbian
Published:

BOISE, Idaho — The sister of a man killed in the Idaho wilderness after he was suspected of kidnapping a teen girl and killing her mother and brother has filed a claim seeking $20 million from the FBI.

Lora DiMaggio Robinson’s lawyer, C. Keith Greer, says James DiMaggio never got a chance for a fair trial before he was shot by FBI agents two years ago.

Greer filed a claim Thursday and said he plans to file a lawsuit in Idaho’s federal court next week.

“We need a lot more information,” Greer said. “We need to know why the officers felt like they were being targeted and to find out if they truly were in harm’s way.”

DiMaggio, 40, was killed Aug. 10, 2013, a week after authorities said he abducted 16-year-old Hannah Anderson and killed her relatives in Boulevard, Calif.

The teen’s disappearance triggered a massive search spanning much of the western U.S. and parts of Canada and Mexico.

FBI agents rushed to the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness near Cascade, Idaho, after four horseback riders reported spotting DiMaggio and Anderson. A law enforcement airplane later spotted their campsite, and rescue teams were dropped in by helicopter.

Agents believed they were being targeted by DiMaggio after he fired rifle shots as they closed in on the campsite. According to the autopsy report, DiMaggio was shot six times by two agents.

“The FBI agents’ unprivileged use of force therefore constitutes an assault and battery against DiMaggio, leading to DiMaggio’s wrongful death under Idaho law,” attorneys stated in the claim. “None of the agents present sought to intervene to prevent the excessive force, though able.”

The FBI agents’ actions were later deemed reasonable by U.S. Attorney Wendy Olson, and they did not face criminal charges.

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