Widow sues over NC trucker’s death in Chesapeake Bay plunge

NORFOLK, VA (AP) — The widow of a North Carolina truck driver who died when his rig plunged off Virginia’s Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel in 2017 is suing for $6 million.

The Virginian-Pilot reports the lawsuit filed by Billie Jo Chen against the CBBT says the bridge-tunnel’s own wind and gauge policy should have prohibited Joseph Chen from crossing the bridge.

Attorneys with Pender & Coward, the Virginia Beach firm representing the CBBT, did not respond to interview requests from The Virginian-Pilot. Filings in Northampton County Circuit Court show the CBBT is claiming sovereign immunity, which typically protects governmental entities from negligence lawsuits.