A former recruitment analyst for the University of Georgia Athletics organization who was critically injured in a car accident in January has filed a lawsuit against the athletics organization and others. Victoria Bowles “suffered multiple debilitating injuries,” including broken bones and lacerated organs, according to the lawsuit, in the crash that also killed UGA football player Devin Willock and another recruiting analyst, Chandler LeCroy, hours after the university’s football national championship celebration.
Bowles is suing LeCroy’s estate, as well as former University of Georgia football player and current NFL first-round pick Jalen Carter and his organization, Breadman Jalen LLC. Carter was driving another SUV that was also at the site, according to investigators. According to the lawsuit, Bowles accuses the athletics department of negligence for allowing LeCroy to drive a university-leased SUV after collecting many speeding and “super speeder” penalties in the six years preceding the event. According to the lawsuit, LeCroy received one traffic ticket while driving with her UGA supervisor.
The lawsuit claims that LeCroy was assigned the vehicle before to the deadly incident and used it to transport a recruit to and from championship celebration festivities, including a dinner on the night of the crash.Bowles was assigned a different vehicle and escorted both a recruit and a UGA football coach to the same meal, according to the lawsuit. Following dinner, the coach informed Bowles that he needed her car, so she handed him the keys and requested a ride from LeCroy.
According to the lawsuit, Bowles and LeCroy dropped off the recruits and then went downtown to continue partying, where they met football players Willock and Warren McClendon at a strip club. Bowles accompanied the party to the club because LeCroy was her driver and “Ms. Bowles did not want to be left downtown alone that evening,” according to the lawsuit. According to Athens-Clarke County police, LeCroy’s vehicle was going “about 104 miles per hour” after leaving the club before striking with two power lines and numerous trees a few miles south of the UGA campus. According to authorities, Willock was thrown from the SUV and killed at the scene. LeCroy died after being taken to the hospital. McClendon was taken to the hospital with minor injuries.
Bowles was in critical condition, according to the lawsuit, with several injuries, including fractures, lacerations, and spinal cord and head traumas that could result in permanent paralysis. Bowles is suing for more than $170,000 in medical expenses, as well as missed salary and future wages that will be assessed later. CNN attempted to reach out to LeCroy’s estate and Carter’s representatives for comment but received no response. In her case, Bowles claimed that she continuously told LeCroy to slow down as they approached the curve. Carter, a rookie for the Philadelphia Eagles, was racing with LeCroy at the time, according to Athens-Clarke County police.
According to police in a news release, “the investigation found that Chandler LeCroy, driver of the 2021 Ford Expedition, and Jalen Carter, driver of a 2021 Jeep Trackhawk, were operating their vehicles in a manner consistent with racing shortly after leaving the downtown Athens area at about 2:30 AM” the day of the crash. “Alcohol impairment, racing, reckless driving, and speed were all significant contributing factors to the crash,” officials said. According to the lawsuit, Carter, who was following LeCroy’s vehicle and did not have a valid driver’s license at the time, saw it slide off the road and strike a pole. According to Bowles, Carter is responsible for “failing to exercise ordinary care and diligence and was careless and grossly negligent” by driving recklessly, at high speeds, pursuing LeCroy, and “driving too fast for conditions during the street race.”
According to the lawsuit, Carter told police that “near the curve of the crash, he slowed his vehicle while beside the LeCroy vehicle, and she passed him,” and that “he admitted that while following LeCroy, he saw her vehicle go off the road and hit a pole, saw the pole fall, and admitted that a wire from the pole fell on his vehicle.” The lawsuit claims that “Defendant Carter illegally left the scene without speaking with law enforcement” despite the fact that he “was aware at the time, he was jointly responsible for the crash.” According to an Athens-Clarke County police spokesperson, Carter spoke with officers the night of the collision. Carter surrendered to police in March after being charged with racing and reckless driving, and he was sentenced to a year of probation for his role in the incident. Carter submitted a no contest plea to the allegations, according to his attorney, Kim Stephens.
The athletics group denies the claims stated in the complaint, alleging that the use of the car that crashed was illegal, according to a statement posted on July 13 that referenced an earlier news release from the school. “Based on our preliminary review, we dispute its claims and will vigorously defend the Athletic Association’s interests in court,” the statement reads. The association stands by its earlier comments, and the lawsuit makes no claim that LeCroy and Bowles were “on duty or acting within the scope of their employment in the hours leading up to the accident.”
“Under no circumstances were recruiting staff authorized to use rental cars to drive at excessive speeds while intoxicated,” according to the statement, and association leaders “patiently supported Ms. Bowles during her long and difficult recovery.” Carter, a standout defensive player who helped lead the Bulldogs to their second national championship in two years, was selected ninth overall in the NFL Draft in April by the Eagles. Willock played on the offensive line in all 15 of the team’s championship games this season. LeCroy worked as a football recruiting analyst, according to her LinkedIn profile.
ncG1vNJzZmidpJq%2Fr63Loaanp6Keu6h6wqikaJ6fp7qmvoyupaKulafAqsDYZqafZZeavLOzyJpkrKyRm7OmvoyipaOtopqxbrXNZp2arJGheqSt0Waaq5mjnXqntcueqmakkazAtrXTZpigmZmjwLV50pyfqKecYq61tMueq6KbXZbAtLvCopitoZ%2BjeqK6w2amraCVp8Bw