Family Sues After Death of 8-Year-Old Who Allegedly 'Flew' Off Playground Slide and Landed on 'Frozen' Surface
Dallin Cunningham was playing on “a corkscrew-styled slide” at Rose Springs Elementary School in Utah when he fell from the playground equipment, according to the lawsuit
A Utah family is suing a local school district over the death of their 8-year-old son, who died after falling from a playground slide during recess.
Dallin Cunningham was playing on “a corkscrew-styled slide” at Rose Springs Elementary School in Stansbury Park on Feb. 6, 2023, when he “exited the slide approximately 7 feet off of the ground and fell,” according to allegations in a lawsuit filed by his parents, Timothy and Kathryn Cunningham, in the Third Judicial District Court earlier this week.
The young boy sustained “severe injuries including fatal blunt trauma to his head” after falling "onto the frozen rock-hard" surface below, per court documents uploaded by CBS affiliate KUTV. Dallin was eventually transported to a local hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.
Dallin died the following day, according to his obituary. “We are heartbroken,” his family wrote at the time. “We will miss his smiles, hugs, cuddles, jokes, playful spirit, and his amazing mind.”
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School staff are accused of not calling 911 quickly enough after the fall occurred, according to the court documents.
Attorneys for the Cunninghams claim the playground did not meet “generally recognized safety standards” at the time of the incident.
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“These failures to follow established safety standards rendered the playground an unreasonably dangerous product,” they said, per the court docs.
Peter Mifflin, the family's attorney, said it is “still very, very difficult” for members of Dallin’s family “to talk about the details” of the boy’s death, according to FOX affiliate KTSU.
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"I've represented a lot of grieving parents and I would say that they are still very, very hurt," added Mifflin, who works for Robert J. DeBry & Associates.
The attorney did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment nor did the school district named in the lawsuit.
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