The U.S. Air Force may no longer be held accountable in a lawsuit filed by the family of a teenager who died at Robins Air Force Base, but the federal government might.
Gabriel Lee Stone, 14, died June 22, 2024, when a wall fell and crushed him at the Heritage Club Pool at Robins Air Force Base in Houston County.
His parents filed a lawsuit in March against the U.S government, Air Force and unnamed Air Force employees, “alleging negligence in the inspection, maintenance and construction of the wall” under the Federal Tort Claims Act and Georgia law.
In an order signed Tuesday by Judge Marc Treadwell, the U.S. government argued the Air Force and unnamed Air Force employees should be dismissed from the lawsuit, court records show.
The government also sought to limit the case by arguing that Gabriel’s parents are not legally allowed to pursue a survivorship claim on his behalf, and that federal law shields the U.S. from lawsuits over how inspections and maintenance are carried out.
Treadwell granted two of those motions, noting Gabriel’s parents agreed to dismiss the Air Force and unnamed employees, and they “will seek leave to amend the complaint to properly allege the survivorship claim,” according to court documents.
The federal government will remain a defendant in the lawsuit.
Camalle Stone, a veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps and Gabriel’s father, said he had taken his sons and their friends to the Heritage Club Pool many times. He wanted Gabriel to know how to swim, instead of learning later in life as he had, Stone said.
After swimming, Gabriel and the other boys were in the bath house when one of his brothers, 17, scaled the wall to retrieve a personal item that had fallen into a hole in the blocks atop the wall on a prior visit. Another boy then climbed on the wall, causing it to shift, lawyers previously said.
Timberly Stone, Gabriel’s mother, and Camalle, claim in the lawsuit that the wall should have been inspected. Court documents also state the wall, built in 1969, was made of hollow, non-load-bearing cinder blocks and lacked supports.
Gabriel tried to stabilize the partition with help from his brother, but the cement blocks fell on him. Three others in the locker room were injured, but Gabriel’s injuries were the most severe.
Lifeguards and the teen’s father worked to free him from under the debris, the lawsuit states. Gabriel screamed in pain before falling unconscious.
Despite lifesaving measures, the teen died from his injuries.
An autopsy conducted by the GBI determined Gabriel died from blunt impact of trauma to his head.
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