Family of Missouri teen who fell to his death on Orlando free-fall ride gets $310 million verdict
A Florida jury delivered a $310 million verdict Thursday to the family of Tyre Sampson, the Missouri teenager who plunged to his death on a free-fall ride at an amusement park over two years ago.
A Florida jury delivered a $310 million verdict Thursday to the family of Tyre Sampson, the Missouri teenager who plunged to his death on a free-fall ride at an amusement park over two years ago.
The civil verdict, announced in an Orange County courtroom after roughly an hour of deliberation, was against the Austrian company that manufactured the ride, Funtime Handels GmbH.
“This verdict is a step forward in holding corporations accountable for the safety of their products,” family attorney Ben Crump said in a statement. “The jury’s decision confirms what we have long argued: Tyre’s death was the result of blatant negligence and a failure to prioritize safety over profits.”
The manufacturer did not send a representative to court, NBC affiliate WESH of Orlando reported, and no attorney was listed in court records. A company spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The damages, part of a wrongful death lawsuit the family filed one month after Tyre's death on March 24, 2022, were split evenly between Tyre's mother and father.
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