Family of drowning victim sues school, YMCA

The mother of a Chicago teen who drowned at a leadership retreat last week has filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against the parties that sponsored the retreat.

The lawsuit filed by Virginia Choice, mother of 17-year-old Melvin Choice, seeks more than $50,000 from North Lawndale College Prep, YMCA of McHenry County and Visionquest International.

Choice drowned on Nov. 14 while trying to rescue two classmates from the Fox River near Camp Algonquin.

The classmates, 18-year-old Jimmie Avant and 16-year-old Adrian Jones, drowned when they left their sleeping quarters and tried to ride paddle boats on the Fox River.

Unknown to them, the drain plugs had been removed from the boats, and when the boats sank, the boys were unable to stay afloat in the cold, fast-moving water.

The boys attended North Lawndale College Prep, a charter school on Chicago's West Side. They were attending a leadership retreat chaperoned by the charter school and run by Visionquest at Camp Algonquin.

The YMCA has operated Camp Algonquin since 2005.

The lawsuit filed in Cook County circuit court alleges the defendants failed to secure the boats and did not provide enough chaperones for the retreat.

According to authorities, the leadership group had enough adults to supervise the 31 students on the retreat, and the teachers were not aware of the boys' plan to go out on the river.

Bob Klein, executive director of YMCA of McHenry County, declined to comment on the lawsuit Wednesday, saying he hasn't yet reviewed it. Visionquest and Chicago Public Schools could not be reached for comment after business hours Wednesday.