The mother of a teenager who died last year while on a camping trip in Klamath Falls has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the Boy Scouts of America for $10 million.
Nolan Henderson of Corvallis was 17 years old when he died while hiking with members of his Boy Scout troop at Rosary Lake in October of 2018.
He climbed to the top of Pulpit Rock, a steep rock face, and fell when part of it dislodged, according to a court filing.
Henderson’s mother Margaret states in the lawsuit that none of the six adult male volunteers camping with the troop had proper medical or wilderness first aid training — and that only one of the adults, Scout Master Lucas Turpin, accompanied the group of boys on their hike.
Turpin did not accompany the boys all the way to Pulpit Rock, though, the lawsuit said.
“As they were nearing the summit, Turpin looked up from his position back towards camp and saw the boys,” the lawsuit states. “Rather than hike to the rock face to assist them, he simply yelled at them to come down.”
When Nolan Henderson fell from the rock, “several strangers came to his aid,” the lawsuit states, and they performed CPR on him for more than an hour until a rescue helicopter arrived and medical personnel determined he was dead.
The lawsuit states the Boy Scouts of America, through its troop leaders, were negligent and their failure to practice basic safety and supervision caused Nolan Henderson’s death.
Margaret Henderson is requesting a jury trial.
Copyright 2019 Oregon Public Broadcasting
