Grandpa charged in 18-month old's death on cruise will change his plea to guilty: Attorney

Grandfather of 18-month-old Chloe Wiegand, who fell to her death from the 11th floor of a cruise ship, has decided to plead guilty so that his family can begin to move on. Salvatore Anello who initially pleaded not guilty in the case has decided to change his testimony so the family can turn their focus to mourning the loss of Chloe. According to reports, Anello, who was charged with negligent homicide for failing to keep his grandaughter safe on Tuesday filed paperwork to change his plea in return for an agreement that included no jail time.

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Cruise ship fall

Chloe died in July last year after falling to her death from the 11th floor of Royal Caribbean Cruise ship. As per reports, Chloe was with her mother in a Children's water park area on the ship before the mother had to tend to another matter leaving her child with Salvatore Anello. Grandfather Anello was closely monitoring Chloe as she played before she decided to walk towards a wall of glass on the same deck. Anello followed Chloe to the area and picked her up to put her up close to the window when she slipped from his hands and fell to her death.

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The family has accused the Royal Caribbean cruise ship of not putting up enough safety measures on the Freedom of the Seas. Anello had earlier insisted that he thought there was a glass barrier in the area from where the baby fell. He further added that he is colour blind and thus he failed to see the window was open. The Wiegand family filed a federal civil action in December against Royal Caribbean Cruises, alleging that the company was at fault for the accident. Chloe's parents blame the company for not having a safer situation on the 11th floor and hoped to bring awareness and ensure that such an accident doesn't happen to another family.

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Anello, who lives in South Bend, Indiana was charged by the Puerto Rican authorities in October last year. Anello will be able to serve his probation in Indiana, family's attorney Michael Winkleman said. 

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Lead Image Credit: AP