Water park execs charged with murder

[IGotWorms 3,297]

https://www.cnn.com/2018/03/27/us/schlitterbahn-waterpark-death-arrests/index.html

 

(CNN)Two designers of a massive waterslide in Kansas on which a 10-year-old boy was decapitated face second-degree murder charges in connection with the child's death, according to an indictment unsealed Tuesday.

 

The indictment of Jeffrey Henry, who is also a co-owner of the Schlitterbahn water park, and John Schooley brings to three the number of people indicted in the case.

 

The construction company involved in designing and building the Verruckt ride -- the world's tallest waterslide -- was also charged with reckless second-degree murder, according to the indictment unsealed Tuesday.

 

Tyler Austin Miles, the park's former director of operations, and the water park itself were charged last week with involuntary manslaughter, according to an indictment unsealed Friday.

 

...

 

The charges against the three executives and two companies stem from the August 2016 death of Caleb Schwab, who was at the Kansas City park with his family, including his father, Kansas Rep. Scott Schwab.

 

Verruckt -- which means "insane" in German -- required two to three riders to be strapped in a raft with a total weight between 400 and 500 pounds. The raft would then "slide down a jaw-dropping 168-foot-7-inch structure, only to be blasted back up a second massive hill and then sent down yet another gut-wrenching 50 foot drop for the ultimate in water slide thrills," the park's website said.

 

The slide was certified by Guinness World Records in May 2014 as the world's tallest water slide.

 

Caleb was decapitated when the raft he and two women were strapped into "went airborne and collided with the overhead hoops and netting affixed" to the slide. The two women suffered face injuries and lacerations, according to investigators.

Lots more at the link.

[jerryskids 5,149]

Second degree murder?

 

Seems like the park was more culpable.

 

According to the indictment, while Caleb's death "appeared at first to be an isolated and unforeseeable incident," park employees "came forward and revealed that Schlitterbahn officials had covered up similar incidents in the past" involving the water slide.

The Friday indictment says the park knew about the issues with the ride, including design failures and maintenance issues, and was aware of other injuries sustained by riders prior to Caleb's death. It details injuries suffered by at least ten other people, ranging from concussions to multiple broken toes.

The raft Caleb was using during the incident was known "for going abnormally fast and going airborne more frequently than other rafts," the indictment says. It was removed twice in 2016 but quickly put back into circulation, investigators learned, according to the indictment.

[Mr. Hand 482]

Second degree murder?

 

Seems like the park was more culpable.

 

Read more about the owner and how all of this happened. He is liable.

[Patriotsfatboy1 1,432]

Let's not lose our heads over this.

[IGotWorms 3,297]

Let's not lose our heads over this.

No recycling from the original thread

[kutulu 1,541]

He was a full head short of the height requirement

[Patriotsfatboy1 1,432]

No recycling from the original thread

I didn't look at the other thread. That was right off the top of my head.

[wiffleball 4,629]

I'd have to see that states instructions for a finding of second-degree murder.

[Patriotsfatboy1 1,432]

I'd have to see that states instructions for a finding of second-degree murder.

Use your head, ya stiff!

[wiffleball 4,629]

You know, this kind of story makes me sick. All these greedy corporate capitalists doing whatever it takes to get a head.

[Sho Nuff 719]

Stupid redneck kid.

[wiffleball 4,629]

It's okay honey, they said our son is with somebody named Annette.

 

 

Well... Actually, ma'am...

[fandandy 3,311]

 

The slide was certified by Guinness World Records in May 2014 as the world's tallest water slide and again in 2016 with the most decapitations on a water slide.

 

[cyclone24 1,787]

2-3 people weighing 400-500 pounds?

 

Missouri was the perfect fockin place for that thing.

[tanatastic 2,061]

They will beat the rap, charging ride designers with murder for an accident is silly. Beyond silly really, other people rode the ride just fine. Don’t care if it broke regulations or whatever, they aren’t murderers for that.

[wiffleball 4,629]

They will beat the rap, charging ride designers with murder for an accident is silly. Beyond silly really, other people rode the ride just fine. Dont care if it broke regulations or whatever, they arent murderers for that.

Like I said, need to see requirements, but yeah.

Seems like another grandstanding overcharge move by a prosecutor.

 

Thing is, if I remember right, the kid's dad is a local politician too.

[SenatorRock 708]

Like I said, need to see requirements, but yeah.

Seems like another grandstanding overcharge move by a prosecutor.

 

Thing is, if I remember right, the kid's dad is a local politician too.

State Senator.

 

We probably would not see these charges if the dad was an average Joe.

 

I remember the story, horrible. I feel bad even asking, but did the kids head actually pop off or was it dangling? Was any video ever leaked?

[naomi 343]

The Daily Mail actually has a pretty comprehensive article when it comes to the rationales in the indictments:

 

According to the indictments, Henry decided in 2012 to build the world's tallest water slide to impress the producers of a Travel Channel show. Henry's desire to "rush the project" and a lack of expertise caused the company to "skip fundamental steps in the design process."

The indictment said, "not a single engineer was directly involved in Verruckt's dynamic engineering or slide path design." The indictment said that in 2014, when there were news reports emerging about airborne rafts, a company spokesperson "discredited" them and Henry and his designer began "secretly testing at night to avoid scrutiny."

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/ap/article-5552545/3-people-face-charges-waterslide-death-Kansas-boy-10.html#ixzz5B1Dlu3rm

[naomi 343]

State Senator.

 

We probably would not see these charges if the dad was an average Joe.

 

I remember the story, horrible. I feel bad even asking, but did the kids head actually pop off or was it dangling? Was any video ever leaked?

 

His brother saw a pretty grisly scene IIRC he was watching for him; knew something went wrong and then saw Caleb's body as it washed down toward the bottom. I don't know the answers to your question specifically though. That's enough to know imo.

[Filthy Fernadez 2,696]

Shutting that ride down lowered their overhead.

[cmh6476 748]

Like I said, need to see requirements, but yeah.

Seems like another grandstanding overcharge move by a prosecutor.

 

Thing is, if I remember right, the kid's dad is a local politician too.

the negligent reporting of other incidents prior to this is what seems to be the most damning here.

[TimmySmith 2,782]

I don't even see involuntary manslaughter here, much less murder.

[ZeroTolerance 582]

The article at the top doesn't seem to get into just how reckless they were. The ride was designed by guys with no education or experience in the field over a matter of a couple weeks. They knew from testing that the rafts were likely to become airborne in the second drop, and when they couldn't find a solution they chose to simply ignore it. They had their employees lie on incident reports about visitor injuries and the employees themselves were afraid to ride it on daily tests. How is this NOT at least manslaughter?

 

If I started a bungee jumping attraction without any knowledge of how to operate one, provided a bungee cord that I knew was likely to break or to extend farther than the height of the platform, then a customer died, would you consider that not to be manslaughter either?

 

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.washingtonpost.com/amphtml/news/post-nation/wp/2018/03/27/a-boy-was-decapitated-on-a-waterslide-now-the-rides-visionary-creator-faces-a-murder-charge/

 

"A simple waterslide can require months of calculation, computer modeling and prototyping by trained engineers before builders break ground. But investigators say that engineers were never directly involved in Verrückts conception or design and that Henry and his team completed a prototype within 36 days.

 

Because of the rush, the indictment says, they skipped fundamental steps in the design process. In place of mathematical and physics calculations, they rushed forward relying almost entirely on crude trial-and-error methods.

 

In some instances, they watched dummies speed down the hill and then fly off the ride, the court documents say. Still, the ride sped toward its opening..."

 

" I must communicate reality to all. Time, is of the essence. No time to die. J. he said in one email. In another: This is a designed product for TV, absolutely cannot be anything else. Speed is 100% required. A floor a day. Tough schedule.

 

Henry and his team members also communicated to one another about the dangers.

 

Verrückt could hurt me, it could kill me, it is a seriously dangerous piece of equipment today because there are things that we dont know about it, Henry wrote in one message. Every day we learn more Ive seen what this one had done to the crash dummies and to the boats we sent down it. Ever since the prototype. And we had boats flying in the prototype too. Its complex, its fast, its mean. If we mess up, it could be the end. I could die going down this ride."

[LOD01 185]

I don't even see involuntary manslaughter here, much less murder.

 

This investigation is heading in the wrong direction.

[TimmySmith 2,782]

The article at the top doesn't seem to get into just how reckless they were. The ride was designed by guys with no education or experience in the field over a matter of a couple weeks. They knew from testing that the rafts were likely to become airborne in the second drop, and when they couldn't find a solution they chose to simply ignore it. They had their employees lie on incident reports about visitor injuries and the employees themselves were afraid to ride it on daily tests. How is this NOT at least manslaughter?

 

If I started a bungee jumping attraction without any knowledge of how to operate one, provided a bungee cord that I knew was likely to break or to extend farther than the height of the platform, then a customer died, would you consider that not to be manslaughter either?

 

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.washingtonpost.com/amphtml/news/post-nation/wp/2018/03/27/a-boy-was-decapitated-on-a-waterslide-now-the-rides-visionary-creator-faces-a-murder-charge/

 

"A simple waterslide can require months of calculation, computer modeling and prototyping by trained engineers before builders break ground. But investigators say that engineers were never directly involved in Verrückts conception or design and that Henry and his team completed a prototype within 36 days.

 

Because of the rush, the indictment says, they skipped fundamental steps in the design process. In place of mathematical and physics calculations, they rushed forward relying almost entirely on crude trial-and-error methods.

 

In some instances, they watched dummies speed down the hill and then fly off the ride, the court documents say. Still, the ride sped toward its opening..."

 

" I must communicate reality to all. Time, is of the essence. No time to die. J. he said in one email. In another: This is a designed product for TV, absolutely cannot be anything else. Speed is 100% required. A floor a day. Tough schedule.

 

Henry and his team members also communicated to one another about the dangers.

 

Verrückt could hurt me, it could kill me, it is a seriously dangerous piece of equipment today because there are things that we dont know about it, Henry wrote in one message. Every day we learn more Ive seen what this one had done to the crash dummies and to the boats we sent down it. Ever since the prototype. And we had boats flying in the prototype too. Its complex, its fast, its mean. If we mess up, it could be the end. I could die going down this ride."

A recipe for disaster, I agree. However, even if all of the safety requirements were followed with regard to weight, there is still much inherent danger in water rides. And the water ride itself didn't kill him, it was the netting. If they can prove that the netting was a known hazard, they may have something.

[Cloaca du jour 2,064]

So all of the ... ride at your own risk signs all over the park dont mean anything legally?

 

This is like having a pond that says... danger of alligators but you let your kid swim anyway.

[Mr. Hand 482]

So all of the ... ride at your own risk signs all over the park dont mean anything legally?

 

This is like having a pond that says... danger of alligators but you let your kid swim anyway.

Did you read anything about how reckless the owners were in designing and putting that ride together?

[tubby_mcgee 685]

He was a full head short of the height requirement

 

 

He was or is?

[wiffleball 4,629]

So all of the ... ride at your own risk signs all over the park dont mean anything legally?

 

This is like having a pond that says... danger of alligators but you let your kid swim anyway.

Believe you're talking about the term bailment. And yeah, it's pretty thin recourse in cases like this.

 

Still, as defendant, I'd definitely ask for a judge, not jury.

[nzoner 936]

2-3 people weighing 400-500 pounds?

 

Missouri was the perfect fockin place for that thing.

That's Kansas City,Kansas

[ZeroTolerance 582]

A recipe for disaster, I agree. However, even if all of the safety requirements were followed with regard to weight, there is still much inherent danger in water rides. And the water ride itself didn't kill him, it was the netting. If they can prove that the netting was a known hazard, they may have something.

Prove the netting was a known hazard...you mean other than the multiple injuries it had caused prior to the fatality? The 14 year old who got a concussion from it, the employee who had a dislocated disc from it, things like that?

[Frozenbeernuts 1,652]

So all of the ... ride at your own risk signs all over the park dont mean anything legally?

 

This is like having a pond that says... danger of alligators but you let your kid swim anyway.

Ride at your own risk of decapitation? I bet there weren't any signs stating that

[fandandy 3,311]

RING

 

Hello, this is Jim.

 

Hey Jim. I need you to remove the head in the hole board at the Verruckt water slide, ASAP!!

[frank 2,143]

Are you guys saying the case doesn't hold water or are you just worried that charging the owners is a slippery slope?

[iam90sbaby 2,118]

Are you guys saying the case doesn't hold water or are you just worried that charging the owners is a slippery slope?

 

Nice.

[WhiteWonder 2,170]

2-3 people weighing 400-500 pounds?

 

Missouri was the perfect fockin place for that thing.

I appreciate the joke and all but..

 

3 normal people wouldn't combine to weight 400+ in any state?

[jerryskids 5,149]

Believe you're talking about the term bailment. And yeah, it's pretty thin recourse in cases like this.

 

Still, as defendant, I'd definitely ask for a judge, not jury.

 

I'm not a lawyer but... that's more for things like getting hit with a foul ball. It doesn't excuse gross negligence.

[Frozenbeernuts 1,652]

This is some seriously negligent shlt... a boy was focking decapitated from it, and more deaths would occur if this ride was left to operate as it was. Why wouldn't we want an incredibly harsh penalty for something this negligent?? Maybe it will serve as a deterrent. It's not like this was something unforseeable, not even focking close

[Sho Nuff 719]

 

I'm not a lawyer but... that's more for things like getting hit with a foul ball. It doesn't excuse gross negligence.

True...kid whose head fell done fell off like Dale Earnhardt is a pretty gross sight.

[Mike Honcho 3,994]

A recipe for disaster, I agree. However, even if all of the safety requirements were followed with regard to weight, there is still much inherent danger in water rides. And the water ride itself didn't kill him, it was the netting. If they can prove that the netting was a known hazard, they may have something.

 

You will just argue anything won't you, regardless of having any knowledge or facts.