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vacuum. In a case that garnered national attention, a jury awarded the child and her family $25 million in damages. But no amount of money could restore the child's ruined body or undo the countless surgeries she had to endure or prevent the lifetime of suffering she can expect. The cavalier and uncaring attitude of BBH in allowing young children to play in an illegal swimming pool, with the possibility of griev- ous injury or death lurking just beneath the surface, should be shocking to the people of Sarasota County. But almost as shocking is the fact that some patrons of Bob's Boathouse apparently lack the mental capacity to protect themselves. Despite several prominent signs posted by the Department of Health proclaiming that the pool is "closed" and not for public use, patrons still voluntarily enter into an illegal, unlicensed and dangerous body of water. Worse, they let their small children play in that body of water, ignoring the horrific risks their children face as a result. In almost any other instance, such behavior would be deemed child endangerment, and the parents or guardians would be subject to criminal penalties for those actions. Because BBH has decided to hide behind its attorneys, who have capitalized on the glacial pace of the civil justice system to delay com- pliance and frustrate the county and state authorities, the danger to the public of the continued use of this fountain as an illegal swimming pool continues unabated. We hope that the owners of BBH have an ethi- cal renaissance and this menace to the public health is shut down … as in the pool drained, the furniture removed and the fence that pre- viously enclosed this area restored. The owners and operators of BBH might think they have no responsibility to their patrons, if their patrons are so dimwitted as to engage in the dangerous use of this illegal pool in spite of clear signage warning against it. Yet a serious injury to or death of one of those patrons will acquaint BBH owners and opera- tors with the personal injury case law that has stemmed from that tragic situation in North Carolina. Their out-of-state residence and the corporate veil will afford little protection in a multi-million-dollar wrongful death suit. We just hope that a death or debilitating injury does not have to be the price paid for the cal- lous disregard for the public welfare by Bob's Boathouse and its owners and operators. % LETTERS TO THE EDITOR The Sarasota News Leader wel- comes letters to the editor from its readers. Letters should be no more than 300 words in length, and include the name, street address and telephone num- ber of the writer. Letters should be emailed to Letters@SarasotaNewsLeader.com, with "Letter to the Editor" in the subject line. Let- ters actually printed will be selected based on space available, subject matter and other fac- tors. We reserve the right to edit any letters submitted for length, grammar, spelling, etc. All letters submitted become the property of The Sarasota News Leader. OPINION Sarasota News Leader July 11, 2014 Page 92