By Dorian Hargrove, Times of San Diego, a member of the San Diego Online News Association
Photo: Liberty Military Housing’s La Mesa complex. (Photo by Drew Sitton/Times of San Diego)
May 22, 2026 (La Mesa) – The family of a 13-month-old boy who died in July 2025 after falling from a second-story living room window at the La Mesa Navy military housing complex where his family lived, is suing the housing operator.
The family moved to the Naval Housing complex, managed by Liberty Military Housing, the month before Kent Lafave’s death. The toddler went to the living room window of the residence to watch his 6-year-old brother play outside.
The window overlooking the street was slightly ajar and, according to the lawsuit obtained by Times of San Diego, was supposed to be fitted with an anti-fall prevention device. The device, according to the lawsuit, failed. The boy leaned against the large window and fell two stories onto the pavement.
He died later that evening.
Lafave is one of at least 20 young children to die from falling through windows at Navy and Marine Corps housing facilities since 2017, according to an investigation by Reuters.
Some of those deaths occurred in San Diego County, one of which was only three months before the La Mesa tragedy.
In April 2025, at a military housing complex in Lakeside, 4-year-old Legend Alfonzo Johnson fell from a second-story window at the family’s residence in Liberty housing’s Eucalyptus Ridge community.
The Johnson family sued Liberty in September of last year.
Now, just months later, Liberty is facing yet another lawsuit over an infant death from an alleged faulty window.
In the lawsuit, attorneys for the family say the window fall prevention device was faulty and the property management company, formerly known as Lincoln Military Housing, failed to ensure that the device was functional prior to the Lafaves moving in.
“[Liberty] owed a duty to the Lafave family to conduct reasonable inspections of the residence to identify unsafe conditions,” according to the lawsuit. “Any reasonable inspection of the residence would have included the window and any accompanying window fall prevention device.”
A spokesperson for Liberty Housing tells Times of San Diego that the company feels for the family, as well as any other family that has dealt with similar tragedies. The spokesperson said the company provides handouts and guides on preventing falls from windows.
“This was a tragic accident, and our hearts go out to the family who was impacted,” said the spokesperson in a statement. “We are honored to provide housing for military families and, given their sacrifices, we take special care to ensure we are delivering on our promises.”
The spokesperson said the company is “vigilant” about window safety and ensuring the safety of military families,, adding that the company installs window guards on all accessible windows.
“While these child-resistant devices are designed to protect occupants from window falls, they are also required by code to allow for emergency egress in case of an event like a fire or the plane crash we experienced last May,” wrote the official, referring to the 2025 fatal Murphy Canyon crash.
“We understand that nothing is more important than creating a safe living environment, and we consistently review our policies and procedures to ensure they meet or exceed industry standards and are protective of the well-being of our residents. According to our records on this home and subsequent inspections after the incident, we are confident that the window safety protocols above were followed thoroughly and completely.”