In a recent interview, Ryan Dorsey shared his son Josey's heartbreaking account of Naya Rivera's final moments. Josey, now 9, was just 4 when he witnessed his mother's drowning in Lake Piru on July 8, 2020. He recounted trying to find a life raft for his mother, but being deterred by a spider on the rope. Dorsey reassured his son that the rope wouldn't have been long enough anyway.

The pair had been swimming when their rented pontoon drifted away. Josey managed to get back to the boat, but Rivera, after helping her son aboard, tragically disappeared beneath the surface. Josey remembers his mother calling his name before she went under. The incident report suggests Rivera exhausted herself ensuring her son's safety.

Dorsey, who was miles away at the time, described the gut-wrenching moment he received the news and his frantic drive to reach his son. A passerby found Josey asleep on the boat three hours after they had initially set out. Dorsey expressed his profound relief that both hadn't been lost that day.

In 2022, Rivera's estate settled a wrongful death lawsuit against Ventura County and related entities. The suit alleged that the rental agency failed to adequately warn Rivera about the lake's hazardous conditions, including strong currents, winds, and underwater debris. It also claimed that while a life vest was offered, Rivera wasn't explicitly instructed to wear it. After a five-day search, Rivera's body was recovered, and her death was officially ruled an accidental drowning.