NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) –
At the end of Flynn Drive, at an unmarked and unofficial boat ramp, Say’von Wright drove into the dark waters of the Ashley River in Nov. 2022. After exiting the car he was in, witnesses say Wright called for help but quickly disappeared down the river and underwater.
The suit says sometime around 3:30 a.m. Wright knocked on the door of a home on Flynn Drive but got no answer and went back to a parked car. The lawsuit assumes Wright was looking for a home, but was unfamiliar with the area so wasn’t at the correct address.
The lawsuit says “Unbeknownst to him the residents had called the police. Once he was spotted by police, he was likely frightened along with his being unaware of his exact location. He left the residence, and the police followed at a high rate of speed.”
It all happened between 3 a.m. and 5 a.m. Later that day, during a search for Wright in the river, police later revealed, that the Mercedes-Benz Wright drove was stolen.
The lawsuit, filed by Wright’s mother on his behalf says “North Charleston Police Officers took no actions to save Wright and in fact they can be heard on their body-worn cameras speaking as if they were looking for a suspect that was trying to escape instead of a drowning victim.”
The lawsuit alleges the city was negligent in hiring the officers who responded and training them based on how they acted at the scene. The document notes any rescue attempts didn’t start until 10 minutes after seeing Wright in the dark waters.
The suit also alleges SCDOT was negligent and responsible for the poorly marked boat ramp saying the agency “Took no steps to warn or secure a known danger on its maintained property.”
The only signage at the ramp is a large white penalty for a littering sign above a much smaller blue that reads “NOTICE: BOAT LANDING CLOSED AT DARK NO PARKING OR TRESPASSING FOR RESIDENTS USE ONLY”.
Filed Nov. 5, 2024, just about two years after the incident, the lawsuit says Wright’s family deserves damages and payment for any legal fees to get it.
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