The case of Wisconsin teen Jake Anderson is making headlines again, more than a decade after his shocking and heartbreaking death. In 2013, the college freshman was found unresponsive by a photographer in frigid temperatures near a Minnesota river. First responders were called to the scene, and Jake was tragically declared dead. His body was sent to the morgue, but that wasn’t the end of this twisted and unfortunate story.
According to Suggest, Jake Anderson was mistakenly declared dead at the scene. Because of the cold temperature, his body and heart rate had slowed down so much that first responders couldn’t find his pulse. However, the Wisconsin teenager wasn’t dead. Instead, he shockingly died later at the morgue.
If it had been discovered that Jake wasn’t dead, his body could have slowly been warmed in an attempt to save his life. Instead, he wasn’t given the necessary medical treatment that could have possibly made a difference.
Now, 12 years after Anderson’s death, his family is finally getting some justice. In April 2025, Jake’s family was awarded more than $6 million dollars in damages. However, it wasn’t paid by the first responders who made the terrible error. Instead, it was awarded to them by their former attorney, Robert Hopper.
Wisconsin Teen Mistakenly Declared Dead and Later Died At The Morgue
A judge declared that Hopper had engaged in legal malpractice that prevented the Anderson family from being successful in a wrongful death suit in the death of their son. Although Jake died in 2013, it wasn’t until 2016 that Hopper told the family that they had a legitimate wrongful death claim. He then didn’t file the suit until just a few days before the expiry date.
It was also discovered that Hopper and his law firm didn’t provide proper information about the lawsuit, causing it to be too late for the Anderson family to follow through. That’s when they decided to take legal action against the lawyer.
The ruling against Hopper led to the attorney losing both his firm and his license to practice law. However, Hopper didn’t challenge the ruling.
“What a tragedy,” one person wrote.
“What could have been. RIP kid,” another comment read.
“So sad and unbelievable,” a third person stated.
“To think he could still be alive today. So sad,” a fourth person said.
Jake Anderson’s story is tragic and shocking. While his parents weren’t able to allow their wrongful death lawsuit play out in the courts against the first responders who sent their son’s body to the morgue while he was still alive, they did get their justice from the attorney who mishandled the case. Unfortunately, no amount of money can take away the pain of losing their son.
