Timeline of Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt’s prosecutions of Schlitterbahn death
Schlitterbahn case timeline
July 10, 2014
The Verruckt water slide opens at Schlitterbahn waterpark in Kansas City, Kansas to acclaim. It is the world’s tallest waterslide. Dignitaries such as Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback welcome its opening.
August 7, 2016
Caleb Schwab, 10, is killed while riding Verruckt. Caleb is the son of Scott Schwab, who was a Republican state legislator at the time and is now the Kansas secretary of state. Caleb’s raft goes airborne and collides with overhead hoops and netting that encircled the ride. Two women who were in the raft with Caleb are also injured.
December 2016
Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt takes over the Schlitterbahn case from Wyandotte County District Attorney Jerry Gorman, who lost his election and would leave office in January. The decision to take the case is controversial and has led to speculation about whether Caleb’s status as the son of a legislator factored into Schmidt’s decision-making
March 21, 2018
A grand jury indicts Tyler Austin Miles and Schlitterbahn in Caleb’s death, accusing them of involuntary manslaughter. Ride designers Jeff Henry and John Schooley and Henry & Sons Construction are also indicted, accused of second-degree murder.
May 23, 2018
Two Schlitterbahn maintenance workers, John Zalsman and David Hughes, are indicted, accused of lying to investigators. The indictment alleges the workers misled investigators about the use of a brake mat on the Verruckt.
October 18, 2018
Zalsman and Hughes are found not guilty after defense attorneys disclose Hughes was interviewed by investigators in Leavenworth County though he was accused of lying to investigators in Wyandotte County. This is the only case related to Schlitterbahn that went to trial. Hughes later said prosecutors wanted him to offer information on Schlitterbahn executives.
November 29, 2018
Schmidt’s office drops charges that Miles lied to authorities and concealed evidence from investigators.
February 22, 2019
Wyandotte County District Court Judge Robert Burns dismisses indictments against Henry, Schooley, Henry & Sons, Miles and Schlitterbahn. He finds that Schmidt’s office abused the grand jury process by showing jurors material and testimony that prejudiced them against the defendants.
