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Court OKs Lawsuit Over Adult Foster Death in West Michigan

EAU CLAIRE, Mich. (AP) - The Michigan appeals court says a jury should decide whether an adult foster care facility contributed to the death of a 59-year-old man who was killed by a pickup truck.

Michael Wrenn was dressed in dark clothes and walking alone on a Berrien County highway on Christmas Eve 2014. Wrenn had a history of mental illness and had spent much of his life in assisted living centers.

His family says staff at the Eau Claire Adult Foster Care home should not have let him walk out on a cold, rainy late afternoon. But the foster home says it was required to follow Wrenn's treatment plan and give him freedom of movement.

The appeals court last week said a jury in southwestern Michigan can decide whether the home breached the standard of care.

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