Family of 9-Year-Old Who Drowned at Henrico Summer Camp Sues SwimRVA for $100 Million

The family of 9-year-old King Overton filed a $100 million wrongful death lawsuit against SwimRVA on Friday, alleging the boy drowned on his first day of summer camp in Henrico County because of failures in supervision and safety. Civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who has joined the family's legal team, was in Richmond for the filing at the John Marshall Courts Building.

According to the complaint, King was underwater for at least 13 minutes before a 7-year-old girl noticed him and alerted an adult, who pulled him from the water. That adult was not a SwimRVA staff member. The family says King's mother told the camp, both verbally and in writing on the day he died, that her son did not know how to swim.

The suit alleges SwimRVA let King take part in an unstructured "free swim" without assigning anyone to watch him, pairing him with a buddy, or keeping him in water suited to a non-swimmer. It also states that a large inflatable in the pool blocked the lifeguard's view of all the swimmers.

At a news conference, Crump gestured to the crowd gathered behind him to illustrate the inflatable's size, saying it matched the dimensions of the raft in the pool. He said it sloped and left the imprint of a large, late-model car, and that it sat in the middle of the pool, obscuring the lifeguard's line of sight. "It is mind boggling how does a child that you entrust to the professionals to teach him how to swim, how does he drown in your care," Crump said.

The defendants include Greater Richmond Aquatics Partnership, which does business as SwimRVA, along with a camp director and five lifeguards or counselors. Those six are listed only as John/Jane Doe 1 through 6 because their identities are not yet known. The family's attorneys say they have asked SwimRVA for the names but have not yet received them.

Crump said he took the case because of its potential impact and because it "shocks your conscience." He said the family contacted him and attorney Mark Krudys after the drowning, and that he called Krudys the same night to learn the facts. Krudys described the toll on the boy's mother, Latasha, saying she has been "so profoundly" robbed of her child and of continuing through life with him.

Separately, the Virginia Department of Education has determined that SwimRVA was not exempt from state licensing requirements for its summer camp program.

In a statement to 12 On Your Side, SwimRVA called King's death "a tragedy" and said its thoughts remain with his family. Because legal proceedings are ongoing, the organization said it cannot comment on specific allegations, adding that it is confident the legal process will allow "a full and fair examination of the facts."

Kelia Bellamy, the family's representative, said King's mother struggles each day to hold back anger, pain and grief, while the facility where it happened "just keep[s] on rolling." The family's attorneys say the death was entirely preventable and that they will pursue every available legal avenue to hold SwimRVA accountable.