Mother of Bend teen killed in June Wickiup Reservoir crash files multi-party lawsuit

Names teen driver, other teen who bought alcohol, 3 govt. entities, Bend Al-Mart that sold alcohol

BEND, Ore., (KTVZ) -- It's been nearly six months since the death of 17 year of Anthony Clough, known as AJ, a former Mountain View High student, in a crash at Wickiup Reservoir.

He was the passenger in a pickup while the driver, who investigators say was intoxicated, was doing doughnuts at the reservoir in late June when the vehicle carrying five teens flipped over, trapping AJ underwater. 

Now his mother, Lynelle Clough, has filed a $34 million lawsuit against six defendants.  

The teen's mother "waited in agony for hours," the lawsuit states, then watched her son's body removed from the water, causing "incredible trauma and emotional pain."

Back in June, AJ's mother shared with NewsChannel 21 just how much she misses him.

 "The hardest part of losing a child is living every day after," Clough said.

The defendants include the driver and the teen who allegedly bought the alcohol.

The US Forest Service and Bureau of Reclamation, the North Unit Irrigation District and Walmart are also named.  

Clough holds the Bend Walmart accountable for allegedly selling alcohol to an underaged teen who used a fake ID for the purchase.

Bend lawyer Emmanuel Miller is working on the case and said reckless behavior has been going on, unchecked, at the reservoir for a long time.

He adds that it is, in part, responsible for why AJ is not here today, and for the pain it’s costing the Clough family.

“It was, and probably forever will be, the worst day of my life," Lynelle Clough told NewsChannel 21 back in July.

The lawsuit alleges negligence, as well as seek expenses related to medical and funeral costs.

Miller said that it's the community that let AJ down, leading to his death, and that the teen driver, charged in juvenile court, failed several roadside sobriety tests.