Settlement reached in drowning
Family of woman who died in pool at Whitehall apartment in 2003 signs $900,000 agreement with owners of complex, ending suit.
- Publication: The Morning Call
- Date: November 2006
The family of a 19-year-old woman who drowned in a swimming pool at a Whitehall Township apartment complex in 2003 has agreed to a $900,000 settlement to end a federal lawsuit against the owners of the complex.
Lorreten Tanoue was found at the bottom of a pool at the Independence Square Apartments on Maryland Circle on July 28, 2003. Her father, Vitalis Qupto, of Whitehall, filed suit in October 2003, claiming his daughter died because two lifeguards on duty were not paying attention to the swimmers in the pool. One lifeguard was allegedly sitting in a lawn chair 10 feet from the pool while another was performing repairs to a car.
The case was destined for trial this month in Reading, but the trial was averted after the parties agreed to a settlement Oct. 25.
