Family of Teen Who Fatally Fell from Florida Ride Files Wrongful Death Lawsuit

The family of 14-year-old Tyre Sampson has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against numerous parties after the teenager fell to his death on March 24 while riding the Orlando FreeFall attraction at ICON Park in Florida.

On Monday, Tyre’s parents Nekia Dodd and Yarnell Sampson filed the complaint against several entities in connection with the amusement park ride, including owner-operator the SlingShot Group, Icon Park, ride manufacturer Fun Time Thrill Rides, and Gerstlauer Amusement Rides, which manufactured the seats and harnesses.

Per the legal documents, Dodd and Sampson allege their son, an "honor-roll student and football player," was on a spring break trip when he "fell at least a hundred feet to his death" after being "ejected" from the ride.

"Despite his prowess on the football field, he was known as a kind-hearted person who cared about others," it read. "Tyre had a long and prosperous life in front of him that was cut short by this tragic event."

The parents allege that the amusement park ride was "unreasonably dangerous" and that staff members were negligent to allow Sampson — who was 6’2” tall and weighed approximately 380 pounds — to get on the ride.

"The Icon Park's Free Fall ride is the world's tallest free-standing drop tower standing at 430 feet. Once the ride reaches the top, it tilts forward 30° and free falls several hundred feet at speeds of more than 75 miles per hour," the papers read. "Upon coming to a stop, the riders experience a g-force of around 4. To put this into perspective, the g-force experienced by astronauts during shuttle take-off is 3."

The complaint also alleges that unlike "most" similar free fall rides, the attraction "only had an over-the-shoulder harness to 'secure' riders."

In response to the lawsuit, an attorney for Orlando Slingshot said in a statement obtained by People, “Orlando Slingshot continues to fully cooperate with the State during its investigation, and we will continue to do so until it has officially concluded.”

"We reiterate that all protocols, procedures and safety measures provided by the manufacturer of the ride were followed," the statement continued. "We look forward to working with the Florida legislature to implement change in the industry and we are also supportive of the concepts outlined by State Representative Geraldine Thompson to make changes to state law through the 'Tyre Sampson Bill' to prevent a tragic accident like this from ever happening again."

Last week, Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services Commissioner Nikki Fried said at a press conference that a report finalized by Quest Engineering and Failure Analysis "confirmed our department's finding that the operator of the Orlando drop tower made manual adjustments to the ride, resulting in it being unsafe.”

"The report confirms manual adjustments had been made to the sensor for the seat in question to allow the harness restraint opening to be almost double that of the normal restraint opening range," Fried said. "These mis-adjustments allowed the safety lights to illuminate, improperly satisfying the ride's electronic safety mechanisms, which allowed the ride to operate, even though Mr. Sampson was not properly secured in the seat."

"As noted in the report, there are many other potential contributing factors that may have played a role in the incident, and that is what our department is continuing to investigate," Fried added.

Last month, a report from the Florida Commissioner of Agriculture and Consumer Services said when the ride's "magnets engaged" upon descent, Sampson "came out" of his seat. However, Sampson’s "harness was still in a down and locked position when the ride stopped."

Ultimately, they determined that Sampson died from "multiple injuries and trauma.”

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