Former WWE Superstar Shad Gaspard tragically died at the age of 39 back on May 17 off the coast of Venice Beach. For those who don’t recall, Gaspard and his 10-year-old son were pulled out into open water via a riptide. When the rescue team reached the pair Gaspard demanded they rescue his son first, which they successfully did, but he had submerged before the team was able to reach him again. His body was found washed ashore three days later.
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On Dec. 21 Gaspard’s widow, Siliana Gaspard, filed a lawsuit against the State of California, Los Angeles County and the City of Los Angeles for wrongful death. Siliana argued in the lawsuit that there were insufficient signs posted to warn swimmers of the dangers of being in the area, that the lifeguards on duty were not properly trained, that the lifeguard team was understaffed and that they were ill-equipped for this type of rescue.
In documents obtained by TMZ, the lawsuit claimed Gaspard was left “in the water to die.” The lawsuit is for damages and burial costs, though neither sides have made a statement since news of the lawsuit’s filing broke.
Siliana released an initial statement shortly after Gaspard’s body was recovered.
“Shad was our whole world and we were his,” she wrote. “There are not enough words to describe what he means to all of us. He was our heart, our soul, our protector, our warrior. He was a brought force of nature, who brought joy to many through his joyous and gracious nature. The outpouring of love from Shad’s friends, colleagues and fans has meant more to us than you can even imagine. We’d like to once again thank the lifeguards, coast guard, divers, fire and police departments for their efforts. Shad was and will always be our real-life superhero.”
Dozens of wrestlers came forward to pay their respects to Gaspard, who made his way to WWE’s main roster as one-half of Cryme Tyme in 2006.
Gaspard’s tag partner, JTG, recently stated in an interview with Chris Van Vliet that WWE should win next year’s Warrior Award posthumously.
“He definitely should,” JTG said. “I don’t know what’s a bigger heroic act than putting his life on the line for his son. But honestly, he would have done it if it was another child. If it was me, he probably would have did the same exact thing.”
