IN - Grandfather charged in cruise ship death of toddler Chloe Wiegand #4

[Chikkamma]

“Sole motivation” my arse. Everything they are doing only hurts their other child.

so true. If they hadn’t so aggressively gone on a public smear campaign against RC.... grandpa may have never been charged, the video may never have been leaked, a google search for Chloe’s name wouldn’t have been “the history of court cases”, and they could have a grieved together in peace as a family.

They brought this on themselves and are now playing the victim, but no one’s buying it

 

[Chikkamma]

“Sole motivation” my arse. Everything they are doing only hurts their other child.

so true. If they hadn’t so aggressively gone on a public smear campaign against RC.... grandpa may have never been charged, the video may never have been leaked, a google search for Chloe’s name wouldn’t have been “the history of court cases”, and they could have a grieved together in peace as a family.

They brought this on themselves and are now playing the victim, but no one is buying it

 

[SouthAussie]

so true. If they hadn’t so aggressively gone on a public smear campaign against RC.... grandpa may have never been charged, the video may never have been leaked, a google search for Chloe’s name wouldn’t have been “the history of court cases”, and they could have a grieved together in peace as a family.

They brought this on themselves and are now playing the victim, but no one’s buying it

It is so very sad. I hope that little Chloe's legacy doesn't end up being a smear campaign and a lawsuit.

It could be so much better than this. Grandpa accepting accountability, talking at schools to young children about the dangers of playing near windows, talking to parents groups about the dangers of windows ......

 

[SaguaroSpirit]

It is so very sad. I hope that little Chloe's legacy doesn't end up being a smear campaign and a lawsuit.

It could be so much better than this. Grandpa accepting accountability, talking at schools to young children about the dangers of playing near windows, talking to parents groups about the dangers of windows ......

It is so very sad. I hope that little Chloe's legacy doesn't end up being a smear campaign and a lawsuit.

It could be so much better than this. Grandpa accepting accountability, talking at schools to young children about the dangers of playing near windows, talking to parents groups about the dangers of windows ......

Those windows weren't the problem. People in search of a payout were.

 

[Chikkamma]

I’m surprised no one is talking about how the family has been super quiet since the video was released.

As far as I know, they only gave that one statement (after the video was leaked) to David Begnaud and that’s it. Silence since then. Am I missing something?

 

[SouthAussie]

Those windows weren't the problem. People in search of a payout were.

Yes, I get that. All I am saying - imo - is that SA and family would do so much better by Chloe by accepting responsibility, then go on to do something to honour her.
So when her brother is looking on the internet in the future, there is something positive out there as a legacy for his little sister.

 

[SaguaroSpirit]

Yes, I get that. All I am saying - imo - is that SA and family would do so much better by Chloe by accepting responsibility, then go on to do something to honour her.
So when her brother is looking on the internet in the future, there is something positive out there as a legacy for his little sister.

I hear you.

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

I’m surprised no one is talking about how the family has been super quiet since the video was released.

As far as I know, they only gave that one statement (after the video was leaked) to David Begnaud and that’s it. Silence since then. Am I missing something?

What can they say? The video says it all. SA lied about not knowing the window was open. The video shows him leaning his head and upper body out the window then lifting Chloe up and placing her outside the window frame. End. Of. Story.

 

[neesaki]

Is it possible CW was dropped earlier in the video than most people think, like right after he lifted her?

Didn’t he say he watched her fall all the way down? Omg...he wanted to watch? ....omg.

 

[Chikkamma]

What can they say? The video says it all. SA lied about not knowing the window was open. The video shows him leaning his head and upper body out the window then lifting Chloe up and placing her outside the window frame. End. Of. Story.

Well, for starters, SA could say that he’s taking the plea now.. He better jump on it fast if its actually an option.

KW/AW could announce that after (finally) viewing the video, they’ve decided to withdraw the lawsuit and their support of SA... OR they could continue their ridiculous campaign trying to prove RC *partially* responsible in the civil suit (having a much lower burden of proof) before disowning grandpa...

I predict at least one of the above will happen over the next couple of weeks.

 

[SaguaroSpirit]

Well for starters, SA


Well, for starters, SA could say that he’s taking the plea now..

So if he did that...the family's lawsuit would definitely be toast?

 

[IceIce9]

What can they say? The video says it all. SA lied about not knowing the window was open. The video shows him leaning his head and upper body out the window then lifting Chloe up and placing her outside the window frame. End. Of. Story.

I keep hoping to hear a statement saying they are dropping their lawsuit. They wouldn’t have to say much else except that they could add a request to allow them to grieve privately so they wouldn’t be giving interviews.

 

[sl222]

I think everyone is over analyzing this to death. It doesn’t matter if he’s a hippie type. Doesn’t matter if he smokes cigs or pot, or even drinks on occasion. There are plenty of people who do those things, yet would never do something as boneheaded as what he did.

Of course most people are normal law-abiding people who have a conscience, whatever their habits, who would never put a child in danger. After seeing what he did to this child on the video, I do ponder what kind of person would be so reckless. I gave him every benefit of the doubt regarding how this could have happened and felt terrible for him regarding the guilt he has to live with. He added insult to injury when he lied about it (as we learned just days ago) and when they mounted their media campaign based on falsehoods. Such bizarre actions are very hard to make sense of. This went way beyond just being a person who has some typical human weaknesses, but other than that isn't going to go out of his way to cause a baby to die.

 

[sl222]

If past actions predict future actions, the family will come out with a statement again condemning the release of the video, and reaffirming their support of SA, and continue in their lawsuit. And may go one step further with more memories/images of how special Chloe was.

IIRC from legal info that has been posted here, they could still end up with some settlement from RCCL even if SA takes a plea. RCCL may have to follow the recommendation of their insurers to settle. (Although since RCCL has been publicly blamed, I hope they don't.) If the family receives any kind of settlement, they will be able to tell their son this is proof that RCCL bore some fault.

 

[Chikkamma]

So if he did that...the family's lawsuit would definitely be toast?

No. A civil suit, including the standards of proof, is very different from a criminal trial. In a civil trial, the family would only need to prove the cruise line was partially responsible. Even 10% responsible, and they would get something.

 

[Chikkamma]

If past actions predict future actions, the family will come out with a statement again condemning the release of the video, and reaffirming their support of SA, and continue in their lawsuit. And may go one step further with more memories/images of how special Chloe was.

IIRC from legal info that has been posted here, they could still end up with some settlement from RCCL even if SA takes a plea. RCCL may have to follow the recommendation of their insurers to settle. (Although since RCCL has been publicly blamed, I hope they don't.) If the family receives any kind of settlement, they will be able to tell their son this is proof that RCCL bore some fault.

I think you nailed it. I can see them going forward with the civil suit anyway. I think the chance for $$$ will be their primary motivation though, not what their son will think, IMOO.

They will have one heck of a time proving the cruise ship had even an ounce of responsibility for this though. This had absolutely nothing to do with the window. Grandpa could have dangled the baby off the room balcony, or over the rail on the top deck all the same.

 

[SaguaroSpirit]

I think you nailed it. I can see them going forward with the civil suit anyway. Even the slim chance for $$$ will be motivation enough for them.

I hope, if they do this, that RCCL will not be found liable for even 1%. IMHO, it was SA 100%, and the videos even seem to show more than negligence.

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

OT/Cruise related. This just happened a couple of hours ago.

Carnival cruise ships collide in Cozumel, Mexico

 

[IceIce9]

I hope, if they do this, that RCCL will not be found liable for even 1%. IMHO, it was SA 100%, and the videos even seem to show more than negligence.

I know I had posted this in the original thread that was deleted. I’ve worked occasionally on the medic crew at a large professional sporting venue. I only work on days when events are being held, so maybe 20 days a year average.

This sporting venue’s owner is well known for having “deep pockets.” In the 20 years I have worked there I have seen a huge shift in how lawsuits are handled.

The lawsuits resulted mostly from slips and falls, and usually involved someone who had been drinking or horsing around. Most injuries were very, very minor. Someone would sue because they bruised their knee after slipping in the beer that they spilled themselves. I could go on listing examples but most were in that category.

Up until maybe 7 or 8 years ago nearly all lawsuits had been settled with a small token amount. This was basically thought of as a cost of doing business, settling nuisance lawsuits for $3,000 - $10,000 each, just to make them go away.

Well it became known that people were getting quick payouts for their injuries and the lawsuits increased greatly. So the owner of the venue decided to fight back and stopped paying anything out as settlement, but instead took every case to court. Most cases were dropped by the injured party after they didn’t get the quick settlement that they had expected.

Several cases that I had been involved with were fans who claimed to have fallen and injured their backs. They sued, and when the attorney for the venue investigated it was found that each of these people had prior back issues that required surgery and they didn’t have insurance. So they went to “deep pockets” venue to “slip and fall” so they could sue and “deep pockets” would have to pay for their surgery.

I am very happy that this venue no longer pays to settle frivolous lawsuits. I could seriously write a book on the crazy stuff people have sued this venue for.

I hope this isn’t too off topic, I just wanted to mention this as an example of a company that no longer pays settlement on lawsuits when they have no responsibility for injury.

 

[neesaki]

I wonder how he is able to lean so far out unless he wanted to look down and under at the hull of the ship but even then that’s easily viewed without doing that. He seemed to be pivoting on his stomach.

IMO there’s something really wrong with this person and I’m beginning to think he could be a risk to others.

I got the impression he was looking around to see if anyone down there was watching. jmo