A wrongful death legal action was initiated on Friday by the relatives of Brett Gardner, a retired New York Yankees outfielder. The suit targets the proprietors and management of the Costa Rican leisure facility where, in March 2025, his 14-year-old son, Miller, was tragically discovered deceased due to carbon monoxide intoxication.
The legal complaint alleges that the defendants “neglected to adhere to fundamental safety protocols,” a claim made half a year after authorities conducted a search of the Arenas Del Mar Beachfront & Rainforest Resort. Furthermore, the family’s legal counsel asserted that both indications and admonitions regarding the necessity for protective measures were present.
The legal document also posited, though without presenting corroboration, that “comparable afflictions” were experienced by other patrons occupying the identical accommodations. Miller Gardner’s mother, father, and elder sibling all fell gravely unwell. The suit recounted Brett Gardner’s depiction of “struggling for survival” and a sensation of being “incapable of moving his limbs.”
The Gardner family lodged in rooms adjacent to a mechanical control area, from which, according to the lawsuit, the carbon monoxide emanated. This, the legal filing contended, resulted from the defendants’ positioning of a gas water heater and their failure to ensure adequate ventilation.
“We maintained throughout that this calamity could have been avoided, and the initial investigative findings corroborated our convictions,” declared the Gardner family in a public statement.
The family’s barrister, Michael Eisner, added: “Documentation demonstrates they received warnings and neglected to implement straightforward modifications for their guests’ well-being. There must be accountability for these sorts of managerial choices.”
The family is pursuing remuneration for wrongful demise, severe negligence, and emotional anguish, among other claims. No criminal indictments have been issued, and an inquiry in Costa Rica remains ongoing.
Two Pennsylvania corporate officers, their venture capital enterprise, and two associated Costa Rican corporations were cited in the federal lawsuit lodged in Pennsylvania. David Callan, director and president of the entities, and R. Scott Williams, the secretary, are the executives identified.
Williams did not reply to a message left by ESPN, and Callan could not be reached for comment.
Following Miller Gardner’s passing on March 21, 2025, Brett Gardner and his spouse, Jessica, conveyed the death of their youngest son on March 23 through a statement issued by the Yankees. As per the announcement, Miller Gardner became unwell along with several other family members while on holiday.
Two days subsequently, a representative from Costa Rica’s Judicial Investigation Department (OIJ) informed ESPN that the Gardner family had “dined at a restaurant, and the food had caused their illness.” The spokesperson stated that the OIJ had considered asphyxiation before ruling it out, and the OIJ later conveyed via text message to ESPN that investigators believed the fatality to be accidental rather than the consequence of malicious intent.
On April 2, authorities confirmed the death was caused by carbon monoxide, potentially originating from an adjacent machinery chamber. Two months later, a representative from the prosecutor’s office apprised ESPN that the matter was still under examination and that prosecutors aimed “to ascertain whether the cause of death constituted a homicide or not, and, if so, to establish responsibility.”
Three months thereafter, when authorities conducted a raid on the hotel to gather supplementary evidence, a Costa Rican prosecutor told ESPN that the inquiry might result in a manslaughter proceeding.
Miller Gardner participated in high school football in South Carolina and wore jersey number 11, the same number his father sported during 14 MLB campaigns, all with the Yankees. Brett Gardner, a beloved team captain, was a constituent of New York’s 2009 championship squad and concluded his career in 2021.
ESPN’s Gueorgui Milkov contributed to this report.