Drowned boy's family receives $167,500 settlement from YMCA

The family of Devin Turner has been awarded a $167,500 settlement stemming from a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the boy's family after his 2002 drowning at the Brainerd Family YMCA.

According to the order approving the settlement and distribution of funds issued Thursday by Crow Wing County District Court Judge John Solien, $62,673 of the settlement will be paid to Heller Law Firm, which represented Devin Turner's mother, Teri Turner; $73,505 will be paid to Teri Turner; and $30,000 will be paid to Devin Turner's siblings.

The settlement offer, agreed to by the attorneys for Turner and the YMCA, allows the case to be closed without going to trial.

"We remain deeply saddened by this tragic event and our hearts go out to the Turner family," said Randy Klinger, executive director of the YMCA. "We are pleased both sides have reached an amicable agreement conclusion."

Devin Turner, who was enrolled in the YMCA's day-care program, was found unresponsive at the bottom of the pool by classmates during a Fun Swim on Jan. 30, 2002. Attempts by staffers and paramedics to revive him were unsuccessful. He was 5.

In May 2003 Teri Turner filed a wrongful death civil lawsuit against the YMCA, claiming the YMCA and its staffers' negligence led to her son's death.

Calls to Stephen Heller, Teri Turner's attorney, weren't returned Tuesday.

MATT ERICKSON can be reached at matt.erickson@brainerddispatch.com or 855-5857.