Devin Willock’s father is suing the University of Georgia for $2 million in damages after his son, a former offensive lineman for the Bulldogs, was killed in a car crash following a celebration of the team’s national championship victory.
Lawyers representing Dave Willock sent a legal notice to the Georgia Board of Regents earlier in April informing that they would be seeking damages for wrongful death after the January crash that killed Devin and Georgia staffer Chandler LeCroy, ESPN.com reported.
$2 million is the max that state agencies can be sued for in Georgia.
Willock was killed on Jan. 15 when a car driven by LeCroy veered off the road and smashed into a power pole – allegedly while racing star Georgia defensive tackle Jalen Carter.
Warren McClendon, another offensive lineman who will be in this month’s NFL draft, and another team staffer, Tory Bowles, were injured in the crash but survived.
Police said LeCroy was driving at 104 MPH when the vehicle crashed, and that her blood alcohol concentration was .197, well above the legal limit.
Dave Willock’s attorneys are alleging that the university was aware LeCroy had a checkered driving history, with four speeding tickets in six years, and that they still allowed her to drive players around.
“UGA and [University of Georgia Athletic Association] agents and employees negligently entrusted a vehicle to LeCroy,” the legal notice read, according to ESPN. “Likewise, UGA and UGAAA agents and employees negligently hired, supervised, trained, and retained LeCroy.”
Dave Willock’s attorneys also said that LeCroy was instructed to be on call to drive players around all weekend with a vehicle that the university lent to her – despite head football coach Kirby Smart previously telling media that it was not her job to get the players home that night.
The attorneys also alleged that LeCroy supplied alcohol to players during the championship celebrations, which UGA spokesman Greg Trevor denied in a statement on Tuesday.
“While we continue to grieve for the Willock family, the demand letter from an attorney for Devin’s father is full of inaccuracies,” Trevor’s statement read.
“[Willock’s attorney] has not provided the university with any sources or evidentiary bases to support these reckless claims. As we have made clear, personal use of vehicles rented for recruiting activities was strictly prohibited. Ms. LeCroy was not engaged in athletic department duties around the time of the accident, and her personal use of the car after her recruiting duties ended earlier that evening was therefore unauthorized.”