$10.5 Million Settlement in Central Florida Fatal Drowning of a Child in a Pool Under Construction

The Haggard Law Firm, led by Michael Haggard and Adam Finkel, successfully secured a $10.5 million settlement in a heartbreaking case involving the fatal drowning of a 5-year-old girl, Thamar Esperance, at a residential pool under construction in Apopka, Florida. 

 A Tragic, Preventable Loss

On September 15, 2021, 5-year-old Thamar Esperance wandered away from her home in the Carriage Hill community just before dinner. She came across a residential pool that was under construction in her neighbor’s yard. Although the pool was filled with water, the construction site lacked a child safety barrier—a critical safety feature required to prevent these very tragedies. Without a fence to block her path, Thamar entered the pool area unnoticed and suffered a fatal drowning. By the time her family discovered what happened, it was too late.The loss of young Thamar was devastating for her family. She is survived by her grieving parents. 

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$11.95 Million Settlement in a Drowning/Wrongful Death Case

The Haggard Law Firm’s Michael Haggard and Adam Finkel, along with co-counsel Julie Hager, have obtained a nearly $12 Million settlement in a drowning case involving a child who made his way through a broken pool gate and into a community pool.

During the morning of August 24, 2019, Mohamed Salim, a resident of the Arbor Keys Condominiums in Tamarac, Florida, dropped off his minivan with a neighbor, so that it could be washed. Later that afternoon, Mohammed, along with his four and six-year-old sons, walked across the parking lot to check on the status of the van. As the van was not ready, Mohamed sent his sons to the nearby playground, while he waited for his van to be finished. At least 13 minutes later, Mohamed heard screams, as it had turned out that his boys left the playground and made entered the community pool. They did this without Mohamed’s knowledge, and while he was monitoring his van.

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