Oregon mother sues preschool after 3-year-old daughter chokes to death

The mother of a 3 1/2-year-old girl who died after choking on a meatball at her Tualatin preschool is suing the school and its owner for $7.6 million. The lawsuit, filed Monday in Multnomah County Circuit Court, alleges that Growing with Pride Preschool and Child Care Inc. and its owner, Lorinda Rule, were negligent in the January 2013 death of Zoey Frontella. The girl choked while eating lunch, suffered acute and severe asphyxiation and died from respiratory and cardiac arrest the next day, the complaint says. Among other claims, the lawsuit by Anne Frontella accuses the defendants of failing to provide "any or adequate observation" during lunch, failing to prepare food items that are safe for a 3-year-old; providing food that pose choking hazards due to their size and shape; failing to perform "any or adequate" measures, including the Heimlich maneuver, to resuscitate the girl.