Family of man who drowned in Tempe Town Lake plans $3M wrongful death suit

PHOENIX — The family of a man who drowned in Tempe Town Lake earlier this year while police watched is planning to file a $3 million wrongful death lawsuit against the city.

Attorneys for the mother of Sean Bickings of filed a notice of claim, the precursor to a lawsuit, with the Tempe City Clerk’s Office last month.

The claim accuses city employees, including the police and fire departments, of negligence for not doing more to rescue Bickings.

It describes Bickings, 34, as “an endearing member of Tempe’s unsheltered community.”

“His drowning caused tremendous grief to family and friends,” attorneys Benjamin Taylor and Dominic Gomez said in a statement Thursday. “We will have additional information to provide in the near future.”

Bickings died on May 28 after he jumped into the lake near Mill Avenue and Rio Salado Parkway. Officers had been questioning him about a reported fight and were running a database check for outstanding warrants when he climbed a 4-foot fence and got in the water, according to the city.

The city released edited officer body camera footage of the incident and a transcript (WARNING: language).

Bickings told police he was drowning and begged for help, according to the transcript.

Officers asked Bickings to swim over to a pylon, but he said he couldn’t.

An officer at one point told Bickings, “I am not jumping in after you.”

Bickings went underwater and didn’t resurface. His body was found hours later by a rescue team.

The officers involved were placed on paid administrative leave. They returned to work after an investigation by the Scottsdale Police Department determined they acted properly by not jumping in after Bickings because of the risk involved.

In August, the city announced it was implementing new policies regarding water rescues.

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