When a parent sends their child to any type of school in Maryland, they place their trust in the teachers and administrators who help to teach their children. There may be certain activities on school grounds that students are involved in that require a parent to be informed and to give their consent for their child to be involved. If a tragic accident occurs, the owner of the property may be held responsible if the proper documentation was not received before the student participated in the event, and a premises liability lawsuit may be on the horizon.
A man with special needs and limited English proficiency was found at the bottom of a high school pool recently, although an attorney for his parents claim that they would never have given permission for him to go swimming because of his limitations. It is not clear if the boy will recover or what kind of damage he will suffer from the near drowning, and doctors are unable to run tests because he cannot be removed from his coma without seizing.
The attorney said the family’s frustration is compounded by the fact that they have received little information about what happened from the district. The only information given stated that the boy was found at the bottom of the pool after a head count found one student missing.
Regardless of the future the boy has, the property owner may be held accountable for the accident and the boy’s injuries. As the family faces an uncertain future, they may be comforted by the fact that the owner may be required to pay for the boy’s care if they are found to be responsible for the accident.
Source: Komo News, “Man remains in coma after nearly drowning in high school pool,” Elisa Jaffe, June 4, 2013