A grandfather facing negligent homicide charges knew the window on the 11th floor of a cruise ship was open before he lifted his toddler granddaughter to the ledge, newly-released court documents claim.
As CrimeOnline previously reported, Chloe Wiegand, an 18-month-old toddler from Granger, Indiana, was on a cruise with family when she lost her life aboard Royal Caribbean’s Freedom of the Seas cruise ship. The ship was docked in Puerto Rico at the time of the incident, on July 7.
Chloe died after falling from the 11th floor and landing on the hard, concrete surface of the Pan American dock. She was playing with her grandfather, Salvatore Anello, in the children’s H2O Zone children’s water park when she fell from an open window.
Anello, who often accompanied Chloe to her brothers’ hockey games, where she enthusiastically banged on the hockey rink glass panel, apparently lifted the girl up at her request while they were in the play area.
In November, San Juan Investigations Chamber Judge Jimmy Sepúlveda ruled that prosecutors provided probable cause for the arrest of Anello. He has been charged with negligent homicide.
Royal Caribbean Cruises file a motion in response this month. The cruise line indicated that video footage showed Anello leaning over the ledge at the window and looking out before he picked his granddaughter up and held her near it. Within minutes, Anello lost his grasp and Chloe fell.
“When he arrives at the open window, and while Chloe is on the floor, Mr. Anello leans his upper-torso over the wooden railing and out of the window frame for approximately eight seconds,” the cruise line’s court motion stated, according to NBC News. “Because Mr. Anello had himself leaned out the window, he was well aware that the window is open.”
“His actions, which no reasonable person could have foreseen, were reckless and irresponsible and the sole reason why Chloe is no longer with her parents.”
The motion also accused Anello of “recklessly endangering” the toddler’s life.
“The only reasonable conclusion from the video is that Mr. Anello knew the window was open before picking up Chloe. He nonetheless lifted the child over the wooden rail and the open window for a considerable period, recklessly endangering her life. There was no ‘hidden danger’ — Mr. Anello knew the window was open.”
According to Michael Winkleman, the attorney for Chloe’s parents, Freedom of the Seas ship didn’t meet industry safety standards.
“This is not some freak accident,” family lawyer Michael Winkleman told NBC News. “This is something that was a preventable accident…These windows are entirely not compliant with the standard for windows on cruise ships.”
Chloe Wiegand Royal Caribbe… by Leigh Egan on Scribd
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[Feature Photo: Chloe Wiegand/Family Handout]
