Man will look into deadly accident

Anderson 'widely known for integrity'

A former federal prosecutor and veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps is the man the city of Fargo has picked to investigate problems with a Fargo roadway linked to a fatal crash.

Before his retirement in September 2007, Norm Anderson spent more than 20 years with the U.S. Attorney's Office for North Dakota, handling high-profile cases such as the Alfonso Rodriguez Jr. murder trial as well as the trial of Michael Gianakos, who was convicted of kidnapping and killing his family's baby sitter.

Anderson's former boss, U.S. Attorney Drew Wrigley, said any investigation Anderson conducts will be done right.

"Norm is truly an extraordinary lawyer. In addition to that, he is widely known for his integrity, his deep-rooted ethics," Wrigley said.

City officials have said they want an independent investigation into what city employees knew about problems on a stretch of South University Drive prior to the death of

8-year-old Amanda Leininger of Fargo.

Leininger was killed Dec. 10 when the car she was riding in collided with another vehicle.

Fargo Mayor Dennis Walaker has said police reports indicate a rut on the edge of the road, which has been tied to crashes and other problems at the same spot, likely played a role in the crash.

Anderson said Fargo police would do a thorough and professional investigation if asked.

"But the city wants to have an independent outside source come in and do it, so there can be no real questions," said Anderson, who has been working part time for the state of North Dakota as a temporary administrative law judge since retiring as a prosecutor.

Much of his caseload as an administrative judge involves workers' compensation claims, said Anderson, adding that at first he wasn't interested in working for the city.

He changed his mind after Fargo officials explained what the job entailed.

"I think you almost feel a sense of obligation to help out if they think you can. So I agreed to do it," said Anderson, who said he will work on the investigation with Tom O'Halloran, a former criminal investigator with the IRS.

"I have a lot of faith in the work he does," Anderson said of O'Halloran.

Anderson said the focus of the investigation will be finding out when city workers learned of problems on South University Drive and what was done about it.

"When did the city know about the conditions on the road out there and who knew? That kind of thing," Anderson said.

In addition to hiring Anderson as an investigator, the city has retained Serkland Law Firm of Fargo to aid the city attorney in handling potential litigation.

"I will represent the city's interest and, of course, in representing the city's interest I will try and determine what happened," said Ronald McLean, an attorney with the Serkland Law Firm.

Fargo City Attorney Erik Johnson said there is no specific deadline for Anderson's investigation to be completed, but he said it is expected to be done by mid-February or sooner.

The exact cost won't be known until the report is done. Johnson said he anticipates that at a rate of $75 an hour the price tag could reach $15,000, at the high end.

Readers can reach Forum reporter Dave Olson at (701) 241-5555