The Leathums of Ben Lomond are filing a lawsuit against the City and County of Santa Cruz for negligence in dealing with a problem they knew about for years. The lawsuit states that it was known that the land was unstable around Love Creek and no one notified them. Mrs. Leathum’s mother was killed by a falling tree and they have not beeen able to remove her body because they are blocked from inhabiting their house. In addition, the insurance company is claiming that their damage does not qualify for coverage of mudslide damage even though the damage was caused by a falling tree.