SoCal family files lawsuit against Six Flags Magic Mountain alleging X2 roller coaster killed son

VALENCIA, SANTA CLARITA (KABC) -- A summer day riding roller coasters at Six Flags Magic Mountain turned deadly for a Garden Grove family, and now they're suing the theme park and the manufacturer of a roller coaster ride they say killed the family's oldest son.

It was supposed to be a day of fun for two brothers and their cousin in June 2022. Their visit took a deadly turn after they rode X2.

The younger brother, Alex Hawley, noticed his older brother, Christopher Hawley, didn't look well when he got off the ride.

"Christopher, he just looked very red, just very like, something just wasn't like right... and then he eventually just collapsed on his way off the ride," Alex said.

According to the family's attorney, Christopher Hawley was rushed to a nearby hospital and died the following day. A wrongful death lawsuit filed against the theme park and the ride manufacturer alleges the 22-year-old suffered massive head and brain damage from the ride.

"The type of injuries that Christopher suffered and the timing of when he got off the ride gives us strength and confidence to believe that at the time of trial, we'll be able to show this was not an injury he suffered earlier in the day or some time prior in his life, but happened during the X2 ride," said family attorney Ari Friedman, a partner at Wisner Baum.

Records from the L.A. County Medical Examiner showed blunt head trauma as the cause of death.

On its website, the theme park describes speeds of nearly 80 miles per hour for the roller coaster.

Christopher's younger brother remembers a sudden halt when they were on the ride.

"Our heads just like went forward and then just like all the way slammed back really hard," added Alex Hawley.

Christopher's mother, Anne Hawley, said he didn't suffer from any health issues. Nearly three years later, she can't adjust to life without her oldest son.

"It's supposed to be the four of us. We weren't supposed to lose one of our boys and not that way," she said.

Christopher was an aspiring actor. He had just graduated from college and was weeks shy of his 23rd birthday at the time of his death.

"He was my son, but he was also a friend. We did so much," Christopher's father, William Hawley, said with tears in his eyes.

Eyewitness News reached out to the theme park, but had not heard back as of Tuesday afternoon. As this family prepares for trial, they are demanding answers.

"We want to know. We've not heard anything from Magic Mountain. There's been no explanation as to what happened or why things happened," William Hawley said.

Friedman said the trial is set to start Oct. 13 in L.A. County Superior Court.