The estate of actor Anne Heche, who died in August when her car crashed into a Los Angeles home, has been sued for $2 million by a woman living there who said the fiery wreck destroyed the home and nearly killed her.
Lynne Mishele, who was working from the Mar Vista home when Heche’s Mini Cooper slammed into it on Aug. 5, said in the lawsuit filed in California Superior Court in Los Angeles that the crash was caused by Heche’s negligence.
“It was as though a record-breaking earthquake had hit, and [Mishele] was right in the middle and on the fault line,” the lawsuit said, according to ET. “Thick smoke, heavy fumes and enveloping flames instantly followed.”
Mishele, the suit continued, will suffer “well into the future” and is “completely traumatized, unusually startled by hearing loud noises, plagued by nightmares and flashbacks of the incident, terrified of walking outside, and, atop that, without a place to live.”
The fire took nearly an hour to extinguish. Heche, 53, fell into a coma on Aug. 8 and was taken off life support three days later. The LA County medical examiner declared her death an accident caused by smoke inhalation and burns, and said she also sustained blunt-force injuries. The Los Angles Times reported she was under the influence of cocaine.
Mishele joined fans in mourning the actor’s death at the time.
“The news of Anne Heche passing is devastating,” Mishele wrote on Instagram. “Her family and her friends and her children, especially, really have suffered a great loss, and my heart goes out for them. This entire situation is tragic. There really are just no words.”
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Mishele concluded the heartfelt message by “sending love to everyone involved.”
Her neighbors organized a GoFundMe campaign that raised more than $180,000 for her destroyed home.
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Mishele’s lawsuit alleged she lost everything, including photos, mementos, household items, business papers, clothing and electronics.
“As a direct consequence of Heche’s outrageous conduct and unlawful acts, Plaintiff and her beloved pets almost lost their lives,” the lawsuit said, according to CNN.
Meanwhile, Heche’s son, Homer Laffoon, is fighting another legal battle involving the estate.
Laffoon filed court papers in September alleging that a document his mother’s ex-boyfriend James Tupper considers to be Heche’s will was forged. The two have been struggling for control of Heche’s estate ever since.
Laffoon didn’t respond to reporters’ requests for comment on Mishele’s lawsuit.