Cruise Ship Lawsuit & Today Show

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It makes no sense. The toddler could see out of the glass on the ground, since it was floor-ceiling windows. Grandpa effed up, fatally so.

I know the parents are grieving, but sooner or later they're going to have to address their grief and anger head on - misplacing it on the cruise ship is just going to delay their pain.

I think it was a horrible accident. Multiple people could have done better. RC probably shouldn’t have those windows open on the 11th floor - at least not without some safety bars. They should do better and they should settle. Grandpa messed up as well, but you see parents pick up kids and put them on railings including at Great Falls Park. That is not a good idea either but we also know no window there. It probably happened in one second before grandpa realized. I don’t think he was negligent. Cruise ship should have done better.

Explain why the ship needs to install bars on the window? Do you realize that entire decks merely have a railing and no windows at all? Do we need fencing now?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I watched that interview and I sobbed. I think there’s a lot motivating the lawsuit. Heartbreak, denial of the grandfather’s role in this, feelings of anger that are easier to place on a large corporation than a beloved family member, a feeling of hopelessness and need to hold someone accountable, etc.

Their lawyer is a life raft while they are drowning in grief. He is telling them what they want to hear.

I can’t possibly judge this family. RC will be fine based on the fact most people think it was grandpa’s fault anyway. I don’t really think the public at large is outraged at RC. The cruise line will be fine.

This family though is living a nightmare and will be for a long time. Let’s have some compassion even if we don’t agree with the lawsuit.

No.

Trying to devastate someone else's livelihood and a corporation that employees thousands to assuage your own guilt is evil.

This lawsuit isn’t going to “devastate” anyone’s livelihood. Companies get sued all.the.time. They will settle for this to go away for a small amount of their operating budget and move on. I don’t see the cruise industry going bust because of this. To call this family “evil” when they aren’t operating from a sensible objective place right now because they’re reeling with grief is pretty low. They didn’t set out to lose their child just to sue the cruise line. *That* would be evil.

Agree.

And I'll buck the tide - the cruise ship has some liability here - why was there an open window at a height of 11 stories that was not clearly marked? From the other thread you can see the opening. It's not small, and while it would be unlikely that someone would fall out of it, it could happen.

RC can and likely will either countersue or plead contributory negligence on the part of the grandfather, but this is not some either/or situation. A business is responsible for making its premises safe. An unmarked open window at that height is not safe.

The ship has been daily for 12 years. If this were a real danger, it would have presented itself before now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can someone please post a picture the railing/glass area? I'm having a hard time envisioning what happened.

Based on this picture it does look like only one window was open. Not the “every other window pattern” that other cruise goers have claimed is the standard on ships. Why just one window? I can see how it appears to be a wall of windows.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can someone please post a picture the railing/glass area? I'm having a hard time envisioning what happened.

Based on this picture it does look like only one window was open. Not the “every other window pattern” that other cruise goers have claimed is the standard on ships. Why just one window? I can see how it appears to be a wall of windows.

You can’t tell the difference between the open window and the closed window in that picture? Really?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can someone please post a picture the railing/glass area? I'm having a hard time envisioning what happened.

Based on this picture it does look like only one window was open. Not the “every other window pattern” that other cruise goers have claimed is the standard on ships. Why just one window? I can see how it appears to be a wall of windows.

But, even so, why would anyone lift a baby or any child all the way up to an open window. From the looks of it, nobody can fall out of that window from the floor.

[Anonymous]

Does anyone know if Cruises keep security videos?

[Anonymous]

The family looked like depraved whites looking to blame anyone but dear old grandpa. He shouldn't have been left with a baby to begin with.

[Anonymous]

I find it interesting that so many posters are shocked and outraged that the family is suing - as if this kind of thing doesn't happen every single day across the US. We are a litigious society. People sue companies and other people all the time for incidents caused by their own stupidity/bad judgment or for things that were true accidents (no one is at fault). And many of these claims settle before lawsuits are even filed because it's cheaper and easier to make it go away than to drag it out in court. Oftentimes the public never even hears about it.

The only difference here is that the family and their attorney are on a media blitz. I personally think that's the wrong approach but there's no way to know who is the driving force behind that strategy - the family or the attorney.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can someone please post a picture the railing/glass area? I'm having a hard time envisioning what happened.

Based on this picture it does look like only one window was open. Not the “every other window pattern” that other cruise goers have claimed is the standard on ships. Why just one window? I can see how it appears to be a wall of windows.

Well if there was only one window open, doesn’t that prove that the grandpa took baby Chloe to the one open window to look outside?? I don’t see how that supports their claim that RC is at fault. If only one window is open then surely you can feel the breeze and see from the sliding track for the window that it was open.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I find it interesting that so many posters are shocked and outraged that the family is suing - as if this kind of thing doesn't happen every single day across the US. We are a litigious society. People sue companies and other people all the time for incidents caused by their own stupidity/bad judgment or for things that were true accidents (no one is at fault). And many of these claims settle before lawsuits are even filed because it's cheaper and easier to make it go away than to drag it out in court. Oftentimes the public never even hears about it.

The only difference here is that the family and their attorney are on a media blitz. I personally think that's the wrong approach but there's no way to know who is the driving force behind that strategy - the family or the attorney.

Of course there is. The family is out there giving interviews detailing their lawsuit. And previously allowed the lawyer to speak on their behalf. This family is well aware of - and in control of - what they are doing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I find it interesting that so many posters are shocked and outraged that the family is suing - as if this kind of thing doesn't happen every single day across the US. We are a litigious society. People sue companies and other people all the time for incidents caused by their own stupidity/bad judgment or for things that were true accidents (no one is at fault). And many of these claims settle before lawsuits are even filed because it's cheaper and easier to make it go away than to drag it out in court. Oftentimes the public never even hears about it.

The only difference here is that the family and their attorney are on a media blitz. I personally think that's the wrong approach but there's no way to know who is the driving force behind that strategy - the family or the attorney.

Of course there is. The family is out there giving interviews detailing their lawsuit. And previously allowed the lawyer to speak on their behalf. This family is well aware of - and in control of - what they are doing.

Have you ever hired a personal injury attorney to help you navigate a tragic situation? Most people are clueless about the legal process. Then factor in their grief. Nearly all people in these situations look to their attorney to help them navigate through the process. If their attorney tells them they need to get their message to the media because it will help their case, of course they are going to do it. If their lawyer tells them the best strategy is for him to get out there and hold press conferences on their behalf, again, they are going to follow his recommendation and allow him to do it.

These are unsophisticated people who are grieving. I think it's incredibly naive to think that they are calling all of the shots here.

[Anonymous]

I can't believe one single person on here is defending this family's lawsuit. Grief does not give one carte blanche to go on a legal and monetary stampede in order to quell one's grieving. It is a sad reflection of today's generation of entitlement that half of you think that even though this was 100% the fault of the grandfather, that a company should in any way shape or form have to compensate them just because they caused, and now have to deal with, the death of their own child. Unbelievable.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I find it interesting that so many posters are shocked and outraged that the family is suing - as if this kind of thing doesn't happen every single day across the US. We are a litigious society. People sue companies and other people all the time for incidents caused by their own stupidity/bad judgment or for things that were true accidents (no one is at fault). And many of these claims settle before lawsuits are even filed because it's cheaper and easier to make it go away than to drag it out in court. Oftentimes the public never even hears about it.

The only difference here is that the family and their attorney are on a media blitz. I personally think that's the wrong approach but there's no way to know who is the driving force behind that strategy - the family or the attorney.

Of course there is. The family is out there giving interviews detailing their lawsuit. And previously allowed the lawyer to speak on their behalf. This family is well aware of - and in control of - what they are doing.

Have you ever hired a personal injury attorney to help you navigate a tragic situation? Most people are clueless about the legal process. Then factor in their grief. Nearly all people in these situations look to their attorney to help them navigate through the process. If their attorney tells them they need to get their message to the media because it will help their case, of course they are going to do it. If their lawyer tells them the best strategy is for him to get out there and hold press conferences on their behalf, again, they are going to follow his recommendation and allow him to do it.

These are unsophisticated people who are grieving. I think it's incredibly naive to think that they are calling all of the shots here.

It’s incredibly naive to not think that the parents are in control of the situation. They are making willful actions. You can view them as puppets in some evil plot orchestrated by this attorney, but that doesn’t mean it’s true.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I can't believe one single person on here is defending this family's lawsuit. Grief does not give one carte blanche to go on a legal and monetary stampede in order to quell one's grieving. It is a sad reflection of today's generation of entitlement that half of you think that even though this was 100% the fault of the grandfather, that a company should in any way shape or form have to compensate them just because they caused, and now have to deal with, the death of their own child. Unbelievable.

I completely agree with this above. No company or entity should be held accountable because of an individuals own negligence. Regardless of the outcome of the negligence.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can someone please post a picture the railing/glass area? I'm having a hard time envisioning what happened.

Based on this picture it does look like only one window was open. Not the “every other window pattern” that other cruise goers have claimed is the standard on ships. Why just one window? I can see how it appears to be a wall of windows.

Well if there was only one window open, doesn’t that prove that the grandpa took baby Chloe to the one open window to look outside?? I don’t see how that supports their claim that RC is at fault. If only one window is open then surely you can feel the breeze and see from the sliding track for the window that it was open.

He just happened to take her to the ONE open window?