Wisconsin Supreme Court allows a lawsuit against New Berlin over 8-year-old's swimming death
The danger to 8-year-old Lily Engelhardt, a nonswimmer, during a field trip to a municipal pool was "compelling and self-evident," the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled Friday, setting the stage for a trial against the City of New Berlin over the child's drowning in 2012.
The court decision reversed the Court of Appeals, which said the city was immune from the wrongful death lawsuit filed by Lily's parents.
July 3, 2012, was Lily's second day at a summer camp organized by the New Berlin Parks and Recreation Department. Her mother had questioned whether Lily should go on the field trip to the Wiberg Aquatic Center in Brookfield but was assured she would be restricted to the splash pad area.
As dozens of children were getting ready at the pool, and some staff members were still in locker rooms, a lifeguard found Lily in distress in the water. She died eight days later.
Read more: https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/local/2019/01/04/wisconsin-supreme-court-no-immunity-new-berlin-girls-drowning/2481831002/