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A Maryland jury awarded more than $4 million in damages to the parents of a 5-year-old boy who drowned in a country club swimming pool last year.
Connor Freed was found floating in the pool at Crofton Country Club at 4:30 on June 22, 2006. He died after being taken to Anne Arundel Medical Center. A 16-year-old lifeguard who had been on the job for less than a month was on duty at the time of Connor's drowning.
Wrongful Death Claim
Thomas Freed and Debra Neagle Webber, Connor's parents, filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the club's pool management company, DRD Pool Services Inc., and family friend Paul Carroll, a car salesman who was swimming with Connor and two other children before the boy drowned.
Carroll represented himself at the trial and was not found negligent in Connor's death. The jury did, however, find DRD negligent for failing to staff the pool properly and for failing to adequately train lifeguards.
“Just hearing that the jury thought that DRD was negligent, it definitely helped us out. To hear that verdict, it took a load off our shoulders,” said Thomas Freed.
Jury Award
Each of Connor's parents was awarded just over $2 million, but state caps in wrongful death cases will lower the total award to $1.3. Attorneys for the parents said they were considering an appeal.
To honor their son, Freed and Webber have set up a foundation called Connor Cares to promote consistency in safety standards and requirements at public pools.
(Source: Baltimore Sun online)
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