A Florida jury has awarded $310 million to the family of Tyre Sampson, the 14-year-old who fell to his death while on the Orlando FreeFall ride at Icon Park in 2022.
The one-day trial was held this week in Orlando. The civil verdict was against Funtime, the Austrian company that manufactured the Orlando FreeFall.
The judge said Funtime was found negligent in Sampson’s death. The manufacturer did not send a representative to court.
“This verdict is a step forward in holding corporations accountable for the safety of their products,” family attorney Ben Crump said in a statement.
“The jury’s decision confirms what we have long argued: Tyre’s death was the result of blatant negligence and a failure to prioritize safety over profits.”
He added: “The ride’s manufacturers neglected their duty to protect passengers, and today’s outcome ensures they face the consequences of those decisions.”
Sampson’s parents, Nekia Dodd and Yarnell Sampson, filed a wrongful death lawsuit in April 2022 and reached a settlement in March 2023 with two other defendants named in the suit – Icon Park and Eagle Drop Slingshot, the ride’s owner.
The damages were split evenly between Sampson’s mother and father.
“A safer future for riders everywhere”
Sampson, from St Louis, Missouri, visited Icon Park during spring break. An operating manual for the Orlando FreeFall ride stated the maximum passenger weight was just over 286 pounds. Sampson weighed 360 pounds and fell more than 100 feet to his death.
After the teenager died on 24 March 2022, the 430-foot-tall attraction was closed and taken down.
Last year, the Florida Legislature passed the ‘Tyre Sampson Act’. The bill, SB 902, added safety standards and measures for amusement rides in Florida.
Crump said in the statement: “We hope this case serves as a wake-up call for the entire industry to implement stricter safety measures and oversight to prevent such tragedies from happening again.
“Tyre’s legacy will be a safer future for riders everywhere.”
