A Connecticut municipality and its board of education have agreed to pay $20 million to settle a wrongful death lawsuit brought by the parents of a 5-year-old student who collapsed during school recess and died two days later. The agreement, announced by the family’s counsel ahead of a scheduled jury trial, resolves claims that the child’s death was preventable and stemmed from inadequate supervision on the playground. The settlement is described by the plaintiffs’ attorneys as a record-setting municipal payout in the state, closing a case that had narrowed in scope after the court dismissed recklessness allegations while allowing negligence-based claims to proceed.
Incident Allegations and Claimed Supervisory Failures
The suit arose from events at Charter Oak International Academy on April 7, 2022, when Romeo D. Pierre Louis collapsed during recess. In a 2023 complaint, his parents, D’Meza Shultz Pierre Louis and Chantel T. Pierre Louis, alleged that multiple teachers failed to maintain an adequate watch and that Romeo remained on the ground for approximately nine minutes before an adult summoned help. The complaint further alleged that at least three teachers disregarded warnings from other children about Romeo’s condition.
According to the pleadings, the defense position included the assertion that children sometimes “play dead,” which the parents cited as an explanation offered for the delayed response. The lawsuit framed the episode as a supervision breakdown rather than an unforeseeable medical event, and the parents alleged that earlier intervention would have changed the outcome. The case also referenced anticipated evidence, including security camera footage, that the plaintiffs contended would clarify the timeline and the adequacy of the adults’ response during recess.
Negligence, Municipal Liability, and the Role of Governmental Immunity
The parents pursued claims under Section 52-557n of the Connecticut General Statutes, alleging municipal liability for the acts or omissions of employees, along with negligent hiring, training, and retention, and damages theories including loss of companionship. They also asserted recklessness, but that portion of the case was curtailed at the summary judgment stage. The litigation thus presented a familiar tension in public-entity cases: how governmental immunity intersects with alleged failures in day-to-day school supervision and safety practices.
In February, Hartford Superior Court Judge Stuart D. Rosen granted summary judgment for the government entities on the recklessness counts while allowing negligence claims to move forward toward trial. The court concluded that disputed facts remained as to whether Romeo faced imminent harm and whether it would have been apparent to a public official that their conduct was likely to subject him to that harm, supporting continued litigation of negligence despite immunity defenses. At the same time, the judge found the pleadings did not sufficiently allege the “highly unreasonable conduct” and “extreme departure from ordinary care” required to sustain recklessness under the governing standard.
The $20 Million Settlement and Procedural Posture Heading Into Trial
The parties reached a $20 million settlement as the case approached a jury trial that had been set to begin in early July and later rescheduled for September, according to the docket. The family previously offered to settle for $25 million in May 2024, underscoring how trial risk, damages exposure, and the uncertainty of disputed facts can shape negotiations even after partial summary judgment. The plaintiffs’ attorneys characterized the final figure as the largest municipal settlement of its kind in Connecticut, though public-entity settlements often turn on a mix of insurance structures, municipal approvals, and litigation posture rather than a single dispositive event.
The parents are represented by Joaquin Madry, Paul Slager, and Nicole B. Coates of Slager Madry LLC, along with Michael Chambers Jr. of the Law Office of Michael L. Chambers Jr., according to court filings. The town of West Hartford and the West Hartford Board of Education are represented by Ashley L. Hoyt and Thomas R. Gerarde of Howd & Ludorf LLC. While the municipal defendants did not publicly detail their rationale for settlement in the materials referenced, the agreement ends litigation that would have tested factual disputes over supervision, response time, and the operational standards governing recess monitoring.
