A Whiteside County judge has granted a request from a Chicago attorney asking for more time to file a post-trial motion in the wake of a $31.5 million wrongful death verdict issued in November against the city of Rock Falls and two Rock Falls fire officials.

Judge James Heuerman on Monday, Dec. 8, agreed to give the city of Rock Falls, former Rock Falls Fire Chief Cris Bouwens, and Rock Falls Fire Chief Ken Wolf until Jan. 12 to file the post-trial motion that could put them on the path to appealing the verdict issued in connection with the 2021 line-of-duty death of Sterling Fire Lt. Garrett Ramos.

In making the request in Whiteside County Circuit Court in Morrison, attorney Joseph A. Culig of firm Hinshaw and Culbertson LLP, serving as appellate counsel, asked that the original deadline of Dec. 15 be extended by 30 days. Heuerman moved the deadline to Jan. 12.

Attorney Michael Gallagher, the Chicago attorney who represents plaintiff Brittney Ramos, argued against the full 30-day extension, noting that Culig, who he said had been retained by the defendants before the trial began, sat through the 9-day trial and the court has already touched on all the issues that came up.

He said Culig also has access to all court transcripts from each day of the trial.

Culig said he needs the extra time because he is handling a heavy caseload, and when combined with the length of the trial, the time required to review transcripts and to research and prepare a post-trial motion, as well as the holidays, the additional 30 days are needed.

Along with the extension, Heuerman also granted Culig’s request to put a stay on the verdict from now until the post-trial motion is filed. Once that is filed, the stay is automatically in place.

The action comes a little over three weeks after the jury rendered the verdict. At a Rock Falls’ City Council meeting on Nov. 18, Rock Falls City Administrator Robbin D. Blackert said the amount owed is “far in excess of the city’s available insurance coverage” and that “the city will review all options in determining the best course of action.”

At the Dec. 2 Rock Falls City Council meeting, the council unanimously approved hiring a second law firm to represent the city and provide insurance coverage advice relating to the $31.5 million it owes.

Andrew M. Barrios of Reed Smith LLP in Chicago wrote in a letter to the city that he plans to handle the matter personally to ensure “efficiency and predictability.”

Barrios will charge the city $960 an hour for his services and, if appropriate, also will use other attorneys at the firm who are billed at a lower rate, typically ranging from $600 to $800 an hour.

Ramos, 38, died Dec. 4, 2021, while fighting a house fire on Ridge Road in Rock Falls that had been reported by the home’s basement resident at 11:04 p.m. Dec. 3, 2021. Ramos arrived at the burning home at 11:21 p.m. as part of a Sterling fire crew assisting the Rock Falls Fire Department.

Ramos, who was fighting the fire while inside the home, was leaving the burning structure to replenish his air supply about midnight when he fell through a hole in the floor into the basement. At the time he fell, fire officials did not know the home had a basement.

Ramos was able to issue two mayday calls, but command officers did not know who was issuing them, where the firefighter was located or what the problem was. They initially identified another firefighter as the one they thought was missing; when he was found, no further work was done to make sure no one else had made the call, according to testimony.

About 30 minutes later, firefighters realized that Ramos had not been seen for a while, and they began searching for him. He was found in the basement in a room adjacent to the room where he fell.

Fire investigators said Ramos was not injured during the fall and had been walking around the basement to find a way out. They believe Ramos survived for about 17 minutes after he fell into the basement and died from asphyxia after running out of air. Firefighters recovered his body at 1:13 a.m. Dec. 4.

Brittney Ramos filed the lawsuit in December 2022, claiming that Bouwens and Wolf, who was a deputy chief at the time of the fire, showed a willful and wanton disregard that caused her husband’s death. The jury found that Bouwens and Wolf each were 50% to blame for Ramos’ death.