Aspiring Doctor Suffers Brain Damage After Friends Push Him In Lake And Leave Him To Drown

A family in Louisiana has many questions after a 26-year-old man has been hospitalized after suffering from severe brain damage, following a near-drowning.

On April 14, Christopher Gilbert, a recent graduate of a master’s degree program at Louisiana Tech University, almost drowned. This had occurred while he was at Lake D’Arbonne. He had been at a close by restaurant with friends.

Gilbert’s relatives say that one of his friends intentionally shoved him into the lake. This is although they knew that Gilbert didn’t know how to swim. They added that he had been underwater for close to 20 minutes prior to a bystander going into the water to retrieve him.

“A friend of his called, and she was hysterical crying. She told me that Chris had fell into the lake. He had been underwater for 20 minutes or so,” his mother stated. She also said that her son had been airlifted to Louisiana State University medical center to be treated.

At the medical facility, doctors informed them that Gilbert had extensive brain damage from the incident and had to be placed on a ventilator.

“I was devastated. I feel like my life had ended at that moment. My son is aspiring to be a medical doctor. My son is going to be a medical doctor. He got his master’s last year in biological science. He’s preparing for medical school, so for this to have happened to him, I was just devastated,” his mother reported.

She added that Gilbert later regained consciousness and is eating on his own and has been removed from life support.

Reports indicate the relatives initially told authorities that Gilbert had fallen into the lake. But after further details were revealed, it was shown that a woman in the group had pushed him in the water.

“In the legal field, we characterize things the way we see fit. Of course, they are saying horseplay. We are saying that it was a criminal intentional push,” the family’s attorney stated.

The family is now urging the Farmerville Police Department to make an arrest in the case.