Charges filed in Dells fall

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A civil lawsuit stemming from the Wisconsin Dells amusement park ride accident that severely injured 12-year-old Teagan Marti on July 30 is forthcoming, according to her family’s attorney.

But criminal charges have already been filed against Lake Delton’s Charles A. Carnell, the operator of the free-fall ride, Terminal Velocity, at the time of Marti’s drop. Carnell, 33, faces one count under Wis. Stat. 940.23 of first-degree reckless injury, a Class D felony punishable by up to 25 years in prison and $100,000 in fines.

Stuart Z. Grossman, who is representing Marti’s family, said his office is wrapping up its investigation into the ride manufacturer and plans to proceed with filing a civil action “within the next couple weeks.”

The Florida girl fell more than 100 feet and suffered swelling in her brain, as well as multiple fractures of her spine and pelvis. A safety net was not properly in place at the base of the ride when Carnell activated the ride.

While amusement park accidents are uncommon in Wisconsin, so too are criminal charges in these types of personal injury cases, said Carnell’s attorney, Christopher T. Van Wagner.

“It is exceedingly rare for any accident of this type to produce criminal charges,” he said.

Van Wagner said generally, criminal negligence or recklessness charges associated with injuries sustained in an accident involve the presence of drugs, alcohol or firearms.

That was not the case in the accident at Extreme World, said Van Wagner, which is one reason he will seek dismissal of the charges.

He said his client “feels awful for the young lady involved,” but questioned whether there is criminal culpability for failure to exercise ordinary care called for under the circumstances.

According to the criminal complaint filed by the Sauk County District Attorney’s Office, Carnell “blanked out” and never saw an all-clear signal before he let Marti go.

Van Wagner was reluctant to go into detail about defense strategy, but said if it proceeds he will attempt to reach a settlement.

“If we reach such a result, there will not be a criminal concession by our agreement,” he said. “Our position is that there is no crime here.”

Sauk County District Attorney Patricia A. Barrett declined to discuss the case and said she “doesn’t comment on pending matters.”

Milwaukee personal injury attorney Victor C. Harding said it’s not unusual for police to conduct criminal investigations in accidents, but it’s rare for charges to be brought, unless there are extenuating circumstances.

“If the guy was not asleep while operating the ride, I’d be surprised if they pursue too hard,” said Harding.

The Warshafsky, Rotter, Tarnoff & Bloch attorney currently has a personal injury case pending that involves a woman who was injured at the Chula Vista resort in the Dells.

In his experience, Harding said criminal investigations in accident cases typically serve as a “shot across the bow,” even if charges are never filed.

But just because it is unusual to charge someone criminally in an accident case does not mean it should not be attempted, said former Waukesha County District Attorney Paul E. Bucher.

Bucher never brought criminal charges against an amusement park operator. But during his time as a prosecutor, he investigated and successfully brought a number of criminal charges tied to accidents, including negligent homicide against an industrial company.

“This stuff was never on the radar screen and things like industrial accidents were historically turned over to OSHA,” he said. “I think the criminal justice system can intervene and I think it’s becoming more common.”

Bucher, who recently opened his own law office in Delafield after three years with Gatzke & Ruppelt SC, gave Barrett credit for bringing the charges.

But he also said reckless injury can generally be difficult to prove.

“I’m assuming it’s going to be an uphill battle,” he said. “I give them a lot of credit and the facts drive any case. I’m sure the office looked at it this one and said, ‘this was not an accident’.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report. Jack Zemlicka can be reached at [email protected].