School Settles Lawsuit Filed By The Family Of A Drowned Boy

School Settles Lawsuit Filed By The Family Of A Drowned Boy

Introduction

The family of a 15-year old pupil of San Ramon Valley High School who drowned in the school’s swimming pool in Danville in May 2018, received an $8 million settlement.

Parents of the boy who drowned in the pool filed a lawsuit six months after the incident, against the school and physical education teacher, alleging that they neglected the safety of their kid.

According to the lawsuit, on May 8, 2018, during a PE class at the high school's pool, the kid and other students were asked to tread water for three minutes, which was extended by 30 seconds. The kid went under the water after the initial three minutes, following which he was pronounced dead a short time later at a nearby hospital.

The school district made a public apology to the community, and the parents. The school district’s attorney informed that the school suspended the use of the pool post the kid's drowning.

The attorney even notified that the teacher is not facing any legal sanctions further and is still a teacher in the high school. Plaintiffs' attorney said the parents are in deep pain, which is worsening even after the settlement.

The Contra Costa County Coroner's Office ruled the cause of the boy's death to be asphyxia due to drowning and the manner of death was accidental. No criminal charges were filed, but the plaintiff's family sued the PE teacher and school district in November 2018.

The lawsuit claimed the PE teacher had a lifeguard certification that expired two months before the incident, as per the reports of the San Francisco Chronicle. The boy's family also alleged that surveillance video showed that the PE teacher was on his phone when the drowning happened, though the district attorney said he was not texting or talking on the phone at the time. 

A similar incident took place in 2019 when a boy almost got drowned in a wave pool at the Cowabunga Bay. The jury awarded $49 million as the boy suffered lifelong injuries. The drowning resulted in severe brain damage to the boy as he was submerged underwater for a longer time. Currently, he requires 24-hour care due to hypoxic and anoxic brain injury that disrupts the oxygen flow around the body.

The civil lawsuit filed in Clark County District Court alleged that Cowabunga Bay did not have enough lifeguards on staff when the boy was underwater. 

Attorneys in the case agreed that investigations through the past four years uncovered facts that showed liability against Henderson Water Park LLC for negligence. Medical experts believe that the boy could live anywhere from 64 to 81 years old and incur medical costs between $40 million and $59 million.