The grandfather who pleaded guilty to dropping his toddler granddaughter to her death through an open window of a cruise ship in Puerto Rico in 2019 was sentenced Monday to three years’ probation for criminal negligence, according to reports.
Salvatore Anello will not serve any jail time for what he said was a tragic accident on July 7, 2019.
»PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Grandfather agrees to plead guilty to dropping toddler to her death
Anello was on summer vacation with the Wiegand family and holding 18-month-old Chloe Wiegand in his arms when she fell through an open 11th-floor window aboard the Royal Caribbean Freedom of the Seas.
Anello told authorities that he was color blind and didn’t realize the window was open.
Three months later, he was charged with negligent homicide, and after more than a year of legal wrangling he pleaded guilty in October. The sentence was handed down Monday in San Juan.
When initially offered a plea deal a year ago, Anello strongly maintained his innocence and said he was reluctant to make a deal with prosecutors although he didn’t completely rule it out, according to his defense attorney Jose Perez.
»FROM JANUARY: Man dies after 177-foot fall from cruise ship in Puerto Rico
Michael Winkleman, an attorney for the Wiegand family, said at the time that Anello filed paperwork to agree to change his plea to guilty in return for probation that would be served in South Bend, Indiana, where the family is from, according to NBC News.
He could have received a three-year prison sentence if he had been convicted in the case.
“This decision was an incredibly difficult one for Sam and the family, but because the plea agreement includes no jail time and no admission of facts, it was decided the plea deal is in the best interests of the family so that they can close this horrible chapter and turn their focus to mourning Chloe and fighting for cruise passenger safety,” Winkleman said, according to ABC News.
The Wiegands filed a federal lawsuit against Royal Caribbean Cruises in December 2019, alleging the company was at fault.
But in January 2020 the cruise line produced video evidence that it said showed Anello knew the window was open.
Royal Caribbean’s court filing stated, “The only reasonable conclusion from the video is that Mr. Anello knew the window was open before picking up Chloe. He nonetheless lifted the child over the wooden rail and the open window for a considerable period, recklessly endangering her life. There was no ‘hidden danger’ — Mr. Anello knew the window was open.”
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