Keith Bedford/Reuters
Royal Caribbean's Freedom of the Seas ship.
- Salvatore Anello, whose 18-month-old granddaughter died last year after falling from the 11th floor of a Royal Caribbean International cruise ship, is pleading guilty to negligent homicide, his lawyer told Business Insider.
- Anello had hoisted his granddaughter up to a wall of windows in a play area, believing there was glass in front of her.
- Anello said in a statement that he was pleading guilty "to try to help end part of this nightmare for my family, if possible."
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Salvatore Anello, the grandfather of an 18-month-old toddler who died last year after falling from the 11th floor of a Royal Caribbean International cruise ship, is pleading guilty to negligent homicide, his lawyer, Michael Winkleman, told Business Insider.
Anello had previously pleaded not guilty after the death of granddaughter Chloe Wiegand, but in a statement released by Winkleman and as reported by NBC News on Tuesday, Anello said he was changing his plea "to try to help end part of this nightmare for my family, if possible."
As part of Anello's new plea deal, he'll be allowed to serve probation in his home state of Indiana instead of spending time in jail, Winkleman said. The hearing during which Anello will change his plea has not yet been scheduled.
Royal Caribbean did not immediately respond to Business Insider's requests for comment.
Wiegand's parents sued Royal Caribbean in December, alleging that Royal Caribbean was negligent by leaving open the window she fell through. Anello had lifted Wiegand up to a railing behind the open window, believing there was glass in front of her.
Her family believes she fell while trying to hit the glass like she did during her brother's hockey games, which ended up not being there, according to an NBC News story from July.
"In my experience, any elevated public place I've been with that much glass has always been a protective barrier," Anello said in his statement.
Wiegand's mother, Kimberly, told NBC's "Today" show last year that she blamed Royal Caribbean for her daughter's death.
"We have a lot of questions - primarily, why is there an open window in the kids' play area 11 stories off the ground?" she said.
A Royal Caribbean representative said at the time that the company was "deeply saddened by this incident, and our hearts go out to the family."
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