A heartbreaking incident unfolded in Los Angeles when parents could only watch helplessly as their young son was killed by a falling tree branch during a summer camp, according to recent legal documents.
Lamar McGlothurn, an eight-year-old boy, tragically lost his life on July 9. A branch from a deteriorating oak tree broke off and fell on him while he was playing at Camp Wildcraft in the Santa Monica Mountains, as detailed in claims filed by his grieving parents.
His parents, Madeline Eaton and Kevin Shrestha, recounted the devastating moment they had arrived to pick up Lamar from the camp in Calabasas, only to witness the tragic accident unfold.
In response, they have initiated legal claims against the government, a prerequisite step toward filing a lawsuit, citing wrongful death and the emotional trauma they suffered.
The family’s attorney, Robert Glassman, stated, “A hazardous, rotting branch loomed over the children, yet no preventive measures were taken.”
“Lamar’s life was unjustly ended due to negligence and inaction,” he added.
The claims alleged that Lamar’s parents were at Camp Wildcraft to pick him up when they watched their son’s death.
They accused the camp’s owners and California’s Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority (MRCA) – which operates King Gillette Ranch – of knowing that ‘branches were dangerously dropping from that tree’ that killed Lamar.
Lamar McGlothurn, eight, died after a ‘massive’ tree branch snapped off an old, decaying tree and fell on him, government claims said
Lamar was being picked up by his parents from the Calabasas summer camp and they ‘tragically witnessed their son’s death’
The fatal incident happened July 9 at Camp Wildcraft, a Los Angeles–based summer camp in the Santa Monica Mountains
Glassman said: ‘If kids play there, camps must inspect there. Public entities that operate camps at their parks, like King Gillette Ranch, can’t turn a blind eye to obvious dangerous conditions and hazards.’
Text messages and emails cited in the legal documents claimed that ranch staff was aware of the tree’s decay and the danger it posed.
On July 2, MRCA allegedly requested the removal of a branch that had snapped, writing: ‘Large tree branch snapped and is being suspended by other branches…Request tree co to address ASAP.’
One day later, an unnamed person only cited as the MRCA’s division chief allegedly wrote: ‘Wow. That was a massive branch. Thank god that no one was seriously hurt or killed.’
The official added: ‘I would not have been able to sleep at night knowing that branch was just waiting to fall.’
Less than one week later, another branch allegedly fell from that same tree onto picnic tables below and killed Lamar.
‘Camp Wildcraft and MRCA inexplicably directed groups of young children to play, paint and rest directly under the tree,’ the claim said.
Messages cited in legal documents alleged that King Gillette Ranch staff knew the tree could be dangerous before it crushed Lamar
The tree failure caused four injuries in addition to Lamar’s death, which could soon be the cause of a wrongful death lawsuit
‘That is exactly what Lamar was doing when he was tragically killed by the falling branch.’
Four others were also injured, including a five-year-old boy who suffered cuts and a laceration to his head; an 11-year-old girl who was left with a broken leg; a 22-year-old man who sustained head abrasions and arm bruising; and a man, 73, who suffered a concussion, according to KTLA.
The boy’s attorneys argued that the ‘tree failure’ leading to his death was ‘preventable’, rather than ‘spontaneous or unforeseeable’ had the dangerous tree been blocked or marked off.
The MRCA told the Daily Mail it was reviewing the claims brought forward by Lamar’s parents and was cooperating fully with the ongoing investigation.
‘From day one, the MRCA has been committed to a full, thorough, and transparent inquiry, with a proposed action plan to ensure that a tragedy like this never occurs again,’ the California agency said.
Lamar’s family’s attorneys have said they are prepared to move forward with filing a wrongful death lawsuit if the MRCA does not respond to their claims in the allotted 45–day period.
The Daily Mail reached out to Glassman, the MRCA, the King Gillette Ranch and Camp Wildcraft for further comment.
