Adrienne Shelly's husband sues contractor

NEW YORK, Nov. 5 (UPI) -- Adrienne Shelly's husband is suing the New York contractor who hired the illegal immigrant who killed the actress and filmmaker during a robbery gone awry.

Shelly -- who wrote, directed and starred in the independent comedy "Waitress" -- was strangled in 2006 by Diego Pillco, who was doing renovation work in the Manhattan building where she had an office. Pillco, 21, has been sentenced to 25 years behind bars for the crime.

The New York Post said Shelly's husband Andrew Ostroy filed a lawsuit in Manhattan Supreme Court against Bradford General Contractors, stating Pillco was an undocumented immigrant and had the company not hired him Shelly could still be alive to parent her 4-year-old daughter Sophie.

Ostroy, who is seeking unspecified damages on behalf of the little girl, further alleged in court papers that BGC was "careless and negligent" in "the screening, hiring, training and supervision" of its workers.

The lawsuit also blames the owners and management of the building where Shelly died, claiming they are "vicariously liable" for her death, the Post said.