Suit filed in case of "Girl dead, boy injured at Glacier National Park

[iliketopetsharks]

The frame grab was actually inserted into the complaint with the permission of the family, knowing it would become public information, but this was an extremely hard decision. PADI filed a motion to strike the complaint because it contained too much detail, but the Court denied this motion.

The video of the second dive will never circulate. Copies provided to the parties in discovery were supposed to be destroyed pursuant to a Court order. These copies were watermarked, so if one finds its way into the wild, we will know who did not comply with the Court order. But I don't expect this to ever happen. Nobody involved in the case was too thrilled to have possession of the video.

Why is PADI interested in suppressing the video? They're not directly involved.

 

[Manatee Diver]

Why is PADI interested in suppressing the video? They're not directly involved.

They were being sued in addition to Gulf Dive, Snow, and a couple of others.

If the case went to a jury the video could hurt them a lot. Just the screen grabs were horrifying.

 

[Subfiend]

Yeah. I'm somewhat on the fence about if Snow should have been charged or not. It just makes me super glad I've had competent and safety oriented instructors in the classes I've taken, who aren't afraid to bounce someone from the classes.

I am not on the fence about it. I built the mountain of evidence to win at trial, and I was preparing for a slaughter, not a verdict.

Ironically, another dive instructor was facing manslaughter charges at the same time I was preparing this case, and he was charged based on a sliver of the evidence that was present in the Montana case. He pled guilty, maybe to a lesser charge, but he still accepted responsibility for his actions.

Also, it is not necessary to prove the element of intent in a negligent homicide case, and you certainly don’t make your decision on whether to charge the defendant based on their answer to the question “Did you intend to kill someone?”

Again, this is just my opinion. And, as I like to say about this case, “Not even a parking ticket…”

 

[Wheeler925]

I am not on the fence about it. I built the mountain of evidence to win at trial, and I was preparing for a slaughter, not a verdict.

Ironically, another dive instructor was facing manslaughter charges at the same time I was preparing this case, and he was charged based on a sliver of the evidence that was present in the Montana case. He pled guilty, maybe to a lesser charge, but he still accepted responsibility for his actions.

Also, it is not necessary to prove the element of intent in a negligent homicide case, and you certainly don’t make your decision on whether to charge the defendant based on their answer to the question “Did you intend to kill someone?”

Again, this is just my opinion. And, as I like to say about this case, “Not even a parking ticket…”

While I think there was some negligence there but I think its near impossible to prove that the negligence was the direct cause(as required by law). As everyone has admitted, the whole day was messy messy messy, defense would no doubt be able to get into a litany of intervening causes(where'd the 44lbs get in the suit, etc).. The computer doesn't seem like as big a smoking gun as you want. In the end, the dive profile was really the only thing relevant, which they got.. So it would hard to even call it some form of discovery violation. The family got a settlement and Snow has been blacklisted in the community. I'd say take the wins you can get.

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

Thanks for this.. Says a lot. I want to add in response to that, besides the zipper(would it have zipped - regardless if it actually WAS), there doesn't seem to be evidence that the drysuit wasn't functioning properly - but rather that the drysuit wasn't properly used (having the correct inflator hose and training). I'm not trying to be judgemental about anything, this case is horrilbe.. just trying to parse the facts to assign blame correctly in my own mind.

If I text and drive, I have no intention of killing someone. But if I do, I deserve to go to prison.

I fail to see the difference here.

 

[Manatee Diver]

If I text and drive, I have no intention of killing someone. But if I do, I deserve to go to prison.

I fail to see the difference here.

Prisons would be overflowing if that were the case.

As a friend once said "God only made one perfect man and I'm not him." Everyone makes mistakes and while you can and often should be held responsible civilly the bar for criminal negligence is very high. Did Snow exceed that bar? I don't know, that really isn't for me to decide is it?

 

[Subfiend]

People are free to have different opinions about every aspect of this case. I have seen all the evidence, and I have mine, but that's just me.

The important thing to remember, and part of the reason we are having this discussion here, is this case should be a teachable moment for divers, instructors, certifying agencies and the dive industry as a whole. This was not the first time an incident like this has happened, and it will not be the last, but I sincerely hope we can extend the time between now and the next incident, and I hope this future incident does not involve anybody that has read these posts on SB or the information available elsewhere. If such an incident does involve a person who looked at the evidence and dismissed it, I hope it is not somebody you care about. I am regularly involved in investigating between one and two dozen diving fatalities every year. I hate it when I see the name of somebody I know, or a behavior anybody who is paying attention knows to avoid, but it happens over and over. If you see less of me around the dive industry, this will be the only reason why.

 

[Rick Brant]

Honestly cannot believe anyone would be unable to decide if Snow "exceeded the bar". I really hope you are not a dive pro yourself.

 

[Wheeler925]

Honestly cannot believe anyone would be unable to decide if Snow "exceeded the bar". I really hope you are not a dive pro yourself.

Thats the rub though isn't it? Imagine it went to a trial.. They'd have not not just prove negligence of some sort, but prove that Linnea's safety was Snow(or whoever's) responsibility from the start. As I understand, it was part of an AOW class, at which point everyone is already a certified diver- who's responsibilities to be safe getting in the water are n them. Where's the line?

 

[Divin'Papaw]

Thats the rub though isn't it? Imagine it went to a trial.. They'd have not not just prove negligence of some sort, but prove that Linnea's safety was Snow(or whoever's) responsibility from the start. As I understand, it was part of an AOW class, at which point everyone is already a certified diver- who's responsibilities to be safe getting in the water are n them. Where's the line?

In ANY training environment, the instructor has a duty of care, even for "certified divers". That duty was clearly violated in this case. If you know anything about @Subfiend and his reputation in the industry, you'd appreciate how much credibility his assessment of the facts carries. At least it does with me.