Brett Gardner and His Wife Sue Hotel After Son Miller, 14, Died of Carbon Monoxide Poisoning on Vacation

NEED TO KNOW

• Brett Gardner and his wife Jessica are suing the Costa Rica resort where their son Miller died of carbon monoxide poisoning last year
• According to the court documents obtained by PEOPLE the Gardners allege that the Arenas Del Mar Beachfront & Rainforest Resort “failed to comply with basic safety standards”
• Gardner said, “This has been the most excruciating year for our family” in a statement via his legal team

One year after the death of their 14-year-old son Miller, Brett Gardner and his wife Jessica are suing the Arenas Del Mar Beachfront & Rainforest Resort in Costa Rica.

Gardner, 42, and his wife are seeking damages from the hotel after Miller died of carbon monoxide poisoning while the family was on vacation, in a lawsuit filed Friday, March 20 and obtained by PEOPLE.

The lawsuit claims that the hotel “failed to comply with basic safety standards,” resulting in the death of their son on March 21, 2025.

“Dangerous levels of carbon monoxide” were emitted into the Gardners’ hotel rooms, the lawsuit alleges, due to a water heater that was placed without proper ventilation in a mechanical room. The “noxious fumes” entered the family’s rooms, they claim, “causing their injuries and the death” of Miller.

The family is looking to hold the resort and its owners accountable for the “individual physical and emotional harm suffered by” Jessica, Brett and their older son Hunter, and are seeking damages for gross negligence, wrongful death, emotional distress, vicarious liability, breach of warranty, loss of filial consortium and additional causes of action, according to the records.

PEOPLE has reached out to the hotel for comment.

Gardner, who played for the New York Yankees from 2008 to 2021, said in a statement via his lawyers, “This has been the most excruciating year for our family. We felt all along that this tragedy could have been prevented, and the preliminary investigation reports confirmed our beliefs. We are committed to raising awareness and pursuing meaningful change. Our hope and prayer is that by taking this stand for accountability, we can help prevent another family from suffering from such a tragedy.”

According to the complaint, Brett, Jessica and Hunter, along with Miller, suffered from the carbon monoxide fumes. Brett allegedly woke up “violently ill” and felt like he was “fighting for his life” on the night of March 20, 2025. “It was unlike anything he had previously experienced. Mr. Gardner experienced multiple episodes of vomiting. He also felt as though he were unable to use his arms or legs,” the complaint claims.

Jessica allegedly “woke up on the floor of the bathroom with no memory of how she got from the bed,” according to the documents, and at “some point she hit her head and cut her forehead.” She also allegedly “experienced disorientation and hallucinations” as a result of the poisoning.

Hunter, 17, also fell ill, according to the documents, and “experienced similar feelings of paralysis” to Jessica. The eldest son of Brett and Jessica was “able to crawl across the floor and open the terrace door,” per the complaint, which said that because Hunter was able to access the “fresh air” on the terrace, he “began to have some slow improvement in his symptoms but remained very weak.”

Brett and Jessica announced Miller’s death in a post on social media on March 23. “With heavy hearts, we are saddened to announce the passing of our youngest son, Miller. He was 14 years old and has left us far too soon after falling ill along with several other family members while on vacation,” the couple began.

“We have so many questions and so few answers at this point, but we do know that he passed away peacefully in his sleep on the morning of Friday, March 21st,” they continued.

In April, an autopsy confirmed that Miller had died of carbon monoxide poisoning. An investigation into his death by Costa Rican officials is still ongoing. The hotel was raided by authorities in September, according to ESPN.

Read the original article on People