Widow blames sign in lawsuit

PROVO — The widow of a man who was known as Utah's leading advocate of holding therapy has filed suit against Eagle Mountain and several developers, saying a poorly placed sign was the reason for the crash that killed him.

Sandra VanBloem filed the lawsuit on behalf of her deceased husband, Lawrence VanBloem, who was killed when he was hit by a truck on U-73 near Eagle Mountain.

The suit, filed Oct. 13, alleges that on Dec. 10, 2004, Lawrence VanBloem was heading north on Ranches Parkway and tried to turn left onto U-73.

"Mr. VanBloem was not able to see oncoming traffic due to a large Ranches development sign that was posted in the median on Ranches Parkway," the lawsuit states.

Lawrence VanBloem, a partner in the Cascade Center for Family Growth of Orem, gained local and national notoriety for his advocacy of holding therapy, a controversial treatment option for abused children or those with severe emotional problems and attachment disorders.

The Cascade Center was pushed into the spotlight following the death of Cassandra Killpack, whose mother was convicted of killing her by using a discipline method she claimed she learned from Cascade therapists, a claim center officials denied.

After VanBloem's death, the center, which was one of the sole places in Utah holding therapy was practiced, closed.

The large sign — advertising housing developments in the community west of Utah Lake — was taken down the day after VanBloem's fatal accident.

The 4-foot-by-7-foot plywood-base sign said "Welcome to the Ranches" and had space for four different inserts touting housing developments, said Scott Kirkland, managing member of The Ranches LLC.

The Ranches development began in 1998 and the sign had been there since probably 2004, Kirkland said.

He said the company had a signage plan approved by Eagle Mountain, which was necessary because the land was on city property.

However, getting information about who authorized and placed the sign is what has delayed the suit's filing, said VanBloem's attorney Jeffrey Eisenberg.

"We've known for some time that the placement of this sign was a major contributor to this unfortunate accident," Eisenberg said. "It's actually been surprisingly difficult to figure out who was responsible for erecting the sign, approving the sign. (It's been) a rather frustrating attempt to get information from public sources."

The sign was cut down the next day by Eagle Mountain officials, Eisenberg believes, although remnants remained for days and weeks afterward.

Multiple calls to the Eagle Mountain city attorney seeking comment on the lawsuit were not returned.

No dollar figure has been set in the lawsuit yet, Eisenberg said.

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E-mail: sisraelsen@desnews.com