W. Va. Woman sues state after her 8-year-old son drowned in a park pool

A West Virginia mother is suing the state Division of Natural Resources, claiming that the agency failed to properly staff a pool party last August at the Chief Logan State Park, where her 8-year-old son drowned.

Cynthia Fite is suing the state on behalf of her son, Austin Cliff Runyon, who lived in Kentucky at the time of his death, according to the lawsuit.

On Aug. 13, Runyon and his family were attending a pool party at Chief Logan State Park's swimming pool when, near the end of the party, the boy strayed from the main group and apparently fell into the pool's deep end, which was improperly lighted, the suit states.

Park officials allowed the party to take place after the pool's normal hours of operation and assigned one lifeguard to watch the swimmers, the suit states.

Fite is suing the agency for medical, mental anguish, and other compensatory damages.

Attorneys of Ross Feller Casey, LLP have built a remarkable record of victories in Drowning and Swimming related cases, amassing a long list of seven- and eight-figure verdicts and settlements. They include:
• A $10 million recovery for a child who drowned in a swimming pool.
• A $6.6 million verdict for the family of a 8-year-old boy who drowned after the lifeguards at his summer camp abandoned their post.
• A $5.5 million recovery for the family of a 15-year-old boy who drowned in a hotel swimming pool.
• A $4.5 million recovery for a man who suffered injuries after he fell into an above-ground pool because of a ladder defect.
• A multi-million recovery for the family of a 10-year-old girl who drowned in a New Jersey apartment complex pool "guarded" by two-lifeguards.