coit
Bullseye
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Another Georgia football player cited for speeding
Georgia freshman linebacker Sameul M’Pemba was ticketed for driving 88 miles per hour.www.al.com
A thread about uga
- Thread starter Dirty Jacket
- Start date
Supersize that order mutt
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Not that the NCAA would ever actually have to balls to enforce them, I wonder how many of the rules referenced in this article have been broken by UGA7
gtleviathan
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Supersize that order mutt
Dodd-Like
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Yeah. Instead of whining about an article in a newspaper, which has pretty much gone national now, how about a public statement addressing and apologizing for the corrupt culture in the cesspool?
gtg970g
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AJC doubles down on 11 victims.
www.ajc.com
Smart on speeding: We haven’t solved that issue
"I’ll be the first to admit we haven’t solved that issue or problem."
Supersize that order mutt
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Kirby trying to cover his ass. Wonder who those "select reporters" were.
For those without subscriptions, here is the article mentioned above ---
Smart on speeding: We haven’t solved that issue
Caption
Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC
GEORGIA BULLDOGS
By Chip Towers
ATHENS — Georgia coach Kirby Smart called for a media briefing Tuesday with select reporters to discuss what has been a controversial offseason off the field for the reigning, two-time national champion Bulldogs.
The hastily called meeting – which was scheduled with less than 22 hours’ notice – came exactly one week before Smart and three of his players are scheduled to appear before more than 1,000 media members attending SEC Football Media Days in Nashville on July 18. The Bulldogs’ eighth-year coach clearly wanted to do what he could to redirect a negative narrative that has surrounded his program since the two members of it were killed in a fiery crash on the January night of the team’s national championship celebration.
ExploreSmart, UGA deny leniency in sexual assault cases
Flanked to his right by Athletic Director Josh Brooks and deputy AD Darrice Griffin and to his left by Qiana Wilson, director of UGA’s Equal Opportunuty Office, Smart alleged that “false accusations” have been levied against his program regarding sexual misconduct or abuse.
An Atlanta Journal-Constitution investigation into the football program that was launched after a UGA player and an athletic department employee died in a high-speed, alcohol-involved car crash Jan. 15 revealed a pattern of unlawful behavior by players, who benefit from an internal system designed to render them immediate legal assistance.
The AJC has identified 11 players during Smart’s eight-year tenure who remained with the team after women reported violent encounters to the police, to the university, or to both. In some instances, particularly those involving domestic violence, the police either filed no charges or prosecutors allowed players to plead guilty to lesser charges. Some players were dismissed. Those include star outside linebacker Adam Anderson, who is awaiting trial on two separate rape charges.
UGA did not dispute that number, but took issue with the characterization that its policies create a permissive culture.
“We take these allegations extremely serious, OK?” Smart said during the hour-long meeting conducted in a team meeting room of the Butts-Mehre football complex. “Me, personally, I take these allegations extremely serious. We do not tolerate sexual misconduct in our organization.”
ExploreKirby Smart: No culture problem, no policy change as a result of fatal crash
As for the speeding epidemic that has plagued his team in the past six months, Smart was less defiant. Georgia football players have been ticketed or arrested at least 12 times for excessive speeding since a high-speed, alcohol-involved crash Jan. 15 took the lives of recruiting staffer Chandler LeCroy and offensive lineman Devin Willock. That was in the early-morning hours the day after Georgia celebrated its second consecutive national championship.
It was two months before Smart finally answered questions about the double-fatality accident that occurred in a university-leased vehicle. On March 13, as Georgia was preparing to open spring football practice, Smart proclaimed, “we’ve got complete control of our program and our kids in our program.”
Georgia players have received speeding or reckless-driving citations at least six times in the days since Smart made that statement.
“I’ll be the first to admit we haven’t solved that issue or problem,” Smart said. “I don’t know that anybody has but, for us, it’s important to acknowledge it first. ... I don’t know if we can ever eradicate speeding; I’m not sure that’s possible. But I’m damn sure going to try.”
The latest player to get pulled over is believed to be freshman linebacker Samuel M’Pemba. The 5-star recruiting prospect was stopped by an Oconee County Sheriff’s deputy Wednesday and cited for driving 88 mph in a 55-mph zone. The officer reported smelling a strong odor of marijuana in the vehicle in which fellow UGA freshman linebacker Raylen Wilson was a passenger. Asked if there was any marijuana in the vehicle, Wilson said the smell was from “last night” when the two players were partying in Tallahassee, Florida. M’Pemba’s 2020 Dodge Durango was searched but only an empty plastic baggie was found.
Smart said a team meeting was held later that day.
“It was very moving, and I’d say very effective,” Smart said. “We had a leader on the team who stood up and talked about how upset he was because Devin was one of his closest friends and teammates. It’s still to be determined if it will have an effect.”
On Friday, senior wide receiver Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint pleaded guilty to an excessive speeding charge. He was arrested by Athens-Clarke County Police on May 23 for driving 90 mph in a 45-mph zone on Atlanta Highway in Athens. A reckless driving charge associated with that incident was dismissed. Rosemy-Jacksaint was sentenced to six months of probation, fined $1,013 and ordered to attend a defensive driving class and a traffic violators impact program. That was Rosemy-Jacksaint’s third speeding infraction in an eight-day period immediately following his acquisition of a 2020 Dodge Charger.
With the exception of felony arrests, in which athletic-department policy results in automatic suspension from all team activities, neither Smart nor the athletic department share disciplinary actions as a result of violations of team policy. Smart insists he has laid down the law with players regarding speeding and said the players are aware of the repercussions for doing so. At the SEC Spring Meetings in Destin, Smart said he didn’t need to because “the players know.”
But that has done little to slow them. The AJC has determined that since 2016, Georgia players have been cited at least 74 times for going 20 mph or more over the speed limit.
“It’s not the volume of the speeding tickets; it’s the speed of the speeding tickets. That’s the bigger concern to me,” Smart said. “High speeds, according to the Georgia State Patrol, is where you get bigger accidents.”
Smart vowed to make a priority of getting his players to slow down, off the field, at least.
“We’re not perfect,” Smart said. “I don’t claim to be that. But what I do want to understand today ... that we won’t tolerate it (law-breaking). We have high expectations and values for the players in this organization.”
(Continued in next post)
For those without subscriptions, here is the article mentioned above ---
Smart on speeding: We haven’t solved that issue
Caption
Credit: HYOSUB SHIN / AJC
GEORGIA BULLDOGS
By Chip Towers
ATHENS — Georgia coach Kirby Smart called for a media briefing Tuesday with select reporters to discuss what has been a controversial offseason off the field for the reigning, two-time national champion Bulldogs.
The hastily called meeting – which was scheduled with less than 22 hours’ notice – came exactly one week before Smart and three of his players are scheduled to appear before more than 1,000 media members attending SEC Football Media Days in Nashville on July 18. The Bulldogs’ eighth-year coach clearly wanted to do what he could to redirect a negative narrative that has surrounded his program since the two members of it were killed in a fiery crash on the January night of the team’s national championship celebration.
ExploreSmart, UGA deny leniency in sexual assault cases
Flanked to his right by Athletic Director Josh Brooks and deputy AD Darrice Griffin and to his left by Qiana Wilson, director of UGA’s Equal Opportunuty Office, Smart alleged that “false accusations” have been levied against his program regarding sexual misconduct or abuse.
An Atlanta Journal-Constitution investigation into the football program that was launched after a UGA player and an athletic department employee died in a high-speed, alcohol-involved car crash Jan. 15 revealed a pattern of unlawful behavior by players, who benefit from an internal system designed to render them immediate legal assistance.
The AJC has identified 11 players during Smart’s eight-year tenure who remained with the team after women reported violent encounters to the police, to the university, or to both. In some instances, particularly those involving domestic violence, the police either filed no charges or prosecutors allowed players to plead guilty to lesser charges. Some players were dismissed. Those include star outside linebacker Adam Anderson, who is awaiting trial on two separate rape charges.
UGA did not dispute that number, but took issue with the characterization that its policies create a permissive culture.
“We take these allegations extremely serious, OK?” Smart said during the hour-long meeting conducted in a team meeting room of the Butts-Mehre football complex. “Me, personally, I take these allegations extremely serious. We do not tolerate sexual misconduct in our organization.”
ExploreKirby Smart: No culture problem, no policy change as a result of fatal crash
As for the speeding epidemic that has plagued his team in the past six months, Smart was less defiant. Georgia football players have been ticketed or arrested at least 12 times for excessive speeding since a high-speed, alcohol-involved crash Jan. 15 took the lives of recruiting staffer Chandler LeCroy and offensive lineman Devin Willock. That was in the early-morning hours the day after Georgia celebrated its second consecutive national championship.
It was two months before Smart finally answered questions about the double-fatality accident that occurred in a university-leased vehicle. On March 13, as Georgia was preparing to open spring football practice, Smart proclaimed, “we’ve got complete control of our program and our kids in our program.”
Georgia players have received speeding or reckless-driving citations at least six times in the days since Smart made that statement.
“I’ll be the first to admit we haven’t solved that issue or problem,” Smart said. “I don’t know that anybody has but, for us, it’s important to acknowledge it first. ... I don’t know if we can ever eradicate speeding; I’m not sure that’s possible. But I’m damn sure going to try.”
The latest player to get pulled over is believed to be freshman linebacker Samuel M’Pemba. The 5-star recruiting prospect was stopped by an Oconee County Sheriff’s deputy Wednesday and cited for driving 88 mph in a 55-mph zone. The officer reported smelling a strong odor of marijuana in the vehicle in which fellow UGA freshman linebacker Raylen Wilson was a passenger. Asked if there was any marijuana in the vehicle, Wilson said the smell was from “last night” when the two players were partying in Tallahassee, Florida. M’Pemba’s 2020 Dodge Durango was searched but only an empty plastic baggie was found.
Smart said a team meeting was held later that day.
“It was very moving, and I’d say very effective,” Smart said. “We had a leader on the team who stood up and talked about how upset he was because Devin was one of his closest friends and teammates. It’s still to be determined if it will have an effect.”
On Friday, senior wide receiver Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint pleaded guilty to an excessive speeding charge. He was arrested by Athens-Clarke County Police on May 23 for driving 90 mph in a 45-mph zone on Atlanta Highway in Athens. A reckless driving charge associated with that incident was dismissed. Rosemy-Jacksaint was sentenced to six months of probation, fined $1,013 and ordered to attend a defensive driving class and a traffic violators impact program. That was Rosemy-Jacksaint’s third speeding infraction in an eight-day period immediately following his acquisition of a 2020 Dodge Charger.
With the exception of felony arrests, in which athletic-department policy results in automatic suspension from all team activities, neither Smart nor the athletic department share disciplinary actions as a result of violations of team policy. Smart insists he has laid down the law with players regarding speeding and said the players are aware of the repercussions for doing so. At the SEC Spring Meetings in Destin, Smart said he didn’t need to because “the players know.”
But that has done little to slow them. The AJC has determined that since 2016, Georgia players have been cited at least 74 times for going 20 mph or more over the speed limit.
“It’s not the volume of the speeding tickets; it’s the speed of the speeding tickets. That’s the bigger concern to me,” Smart said. “High speeds, according to the Georgia State Patrol, is where you get bigger accidents.”
Smart vowed to make a priority of getting his players to slow down, off the field, at least.
“We’re not perfect,” Smart said. “I don’t claim to be that. But what I do want to understand today ... that we won’t tolerate it (law-breaking). We have high expectations and values for the players in this organization.”
(Continued in next post)
Supersize that order mutt
Dodd-Like
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SPEEDING BULLDOGS
1. Samuel M’Pemba, freshman, linebacker: Stopped by Oconee County Sheriff’s Department on July 5 and cited for driving 88 mph in a 55 mph zone. Charges still pending.
2. Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint, junior, wide receiver: Stopped by Athens-Clarke County Police on May 23 and cited for reckless driving and speeding-maximum limits after being clocked at 90 in a 45 mph zone on Atlanta Highway.
3. Rosemy-Jacksaint: Stopped by police in Coral Springs, Florida, on May 16 and cited for speeding (71 in a 40 mph zone)
4. Rosemy-Jacksaint: Stopped by police in Coral Springs on May 15 and cited for speeding (60 in a 50 mph zone)
5. De’Nylon Morrisette, freshman, wide receiver: Arrested on May 9 for DUI/drugs by Oconee County authorities after striking another vehicle from behind on Georgia Highway 316. Also charged with driving too fast for conditions.
6. Kendall Milton, sophomore, running back: Stopped by Georgia State Patrol on March 25 in Athens for speeding (79 in a 65 mph zone).
7. Christen Miller, freshman, defensive lineman: Stopped by Oconee County Sheriff’s Department on March 25 for speeding (95 in a 65).
8. Jalen Carter, junior, defensive lineman: Arrested by Athens-Clarke County Police on March 1 on charges of street racing and reckless driving stemming from the Jan. 15 double-fatality crash that took the life of teammate Devin Willock and football recruiting staffer Chandler LeCroy. On March 16, Carter pleaded no contest and was sentenced to 12 months of probation, fined $1,000, ordered to do 80 hours of community service and attend a state-approved defensive-driving course.
9. Marvin Jones, freshman, defensive end: Stopped by Georgia State Patrol in Athens on Feb. 23 for driving 93 in a 65 mph zone on the Highway 10 Loop, which is the four-lane perimeter highway that surrounds Athens.
10. Morrissette: Stopped by Athens-Clarke County Police on Feb. 23 for driving 81 in a 45 mph zone on Atlanta Highway in his gray 2019 Dodge Charger.
11. Aliou Bah, freshman, offensive lineman: Stopped in February by Athens-Clarke County Police for driving 65 in a 45 mph zone in a gray 2020 Dodge Charger on Atlanta Highway at Epps Bridge Parkway. He received 12 months’ probation and was ordered to complete a defensive driving course and traffic violators’ impact program, pay a $635 fine and do 40 hours of community service.
12. Jamon Dumas-Johnson, junior, linebacker: Arrested on Feb. 21 for racing and reckless driving for an incident that actually occurred Jan. 10. On April 17, pleaded guilty to reckless driving and had racing charge dismissed. He was sentenced to 12 months probation and was ordered complete a defensive driving course and traffic violators’ impact program, pay a $635 fine and do 40 hours of community service.
1. Samuel M’Pemba, freshman, linebacker: Stopped by Oconee County Sheriff’s Department on July 5 and cited for driving 88 mph in a 55 mph zone. Charges still pending.
2. Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint, junior, wide receiver: Stopped by Athens-Clarke County Police on May 23 and cited for reckless driving and speeding-maximum limits after being clocked at 90 in a 45 mph zone on Atlanta Highway.
3. Rosemy-Jacksaint: Stopped by police in Coral Springs, Florida, on May 16 and cited for speeding (71 in a 40 mph zone)
4. Rosemy-Jacksaint: Stopped by police in Coral Springs on May 15 and cited for speeding (60 in a 50 mph zone)
5. De’Nylon Morrisette, freshman, wide receiver: Arrested on May 9 for DUI/drugs by Oconee County authorities after striking another vehicle from behind on Georgia Highway 316. Also charged with driving too fast for conditions.
6. Kendall Milton, sophomore, running back: Stopped by Georgia State Patrol on March 25 in Athens for speeding (79 in a 65 mph zone).
7. Christen Miller, freshman, defensive lineman: Stopped by Oconee County Sheriff’s Department on March 25 for speeding (95 in a 65).
8. Jalen Carter, junior, defensive lineman: Arrested by Athens-Clarke County Police on March 1 on charges of street racing and reckless driving stemming from the Jan. 15 double-fatality crash that took the life of teammate Devin Willock and football recruiting staffer Chandler LeCroy. On March 16, Carter pleaded no contest and was sentenced to 12 months of probation, fined $1,000, ordered to do 80 hours of community service and attend a state-approved defensive-driving course.
9. Marvin Jones, freshman, defensive end: Stopped by Georgia State Patrol in Athens on Feb. 23 for driving 93 in a 65 mph zone on the Highway 10 Loop, which is the four-lane perimeter highway that surrounds Athens.
10. Morrissette: Stopped by Athens-Clarke County Police on Feb. 23 for driving 81 in a 45 mph zone on Atlanta Highway in his gray 2019 Dodge Charger.
11. Aliou Bah, freshman, offensive lineman: Stopped in February by Athens-Clarke County Police for driving 65 in a 45 mph zone in a gray 2020 Dodge Charger on Atlanta Highway at Epps Bridge Parkway. He received 12 months’ probation and was ordered to complete a defensive driving course and traffic violators’ impact program, pay a $635 fine and do 40 hours of community service.
12. Jamon Dumas-Johnson, junior, linebacker: Arrested on Feb. 21 for racing and reckless driving for an incident that actually occurred Jan. 10. On April 17, pleaded guilty to reckless driving and had racing charge dismissed. He was sentenced to 12 months probation and was ordered complete a defensive driving course and traffic violators’ impact program, pay a $635 fine and do 40 hours of community service.
UGA's Smart: Speeding remains issue for team
With at least 11 traffic-related moving violations involving Georgia players since Jan. 15, Kirby Smart said he'd "be the first to admit we haven't solved that issue."
Being s$$$-faced drunk could be part of the problem - has that been mentioned. Hope they get it worked out cause it ain't good.
thracer
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Look for uga to find a way to give him 5 hour’s credit for taking a defensive driving course
Tshirt Man
Flats Noob
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5 hours? Hell, he'll got a diploma if he passes it
Supersize that order mutt
Dodd-Like
- Joined
- Mar 26, 2013
- Messages
- 4,692
Former UGA football staffer files suit over fatal crash
Caption
NEWS
By Alan Judd
3 hours ago
Lawsuit claims athletic association made false statements regarding rental vehicle use
A survivor of a fatal car crash that stunned the University of Georgia football program has filed a lawsuit that blames the accident in part on negligence by the university’s athletic association.
The lawsuit, filed late Wednesday by Victoria S. Bowles, a former recruiting analyst for the football team, also says athletic association officials made false public statements about events that preceded the Jan. 15 crash.
In addition to the athletic association, Bowles, who goes by Tory, is suing the estate of Chandler LeCroy, a recruiting analyst who died in the crash, and former Georgia football player Jalen Carter. Police say Carter and LeCroy raced at speeds exceeding 100 mph moments before the crash, which also killed football player Devin Willock. Bowles and Willock were both back-seat passengers. A front-seat passenger, football player Warren McClendon, received minor injuries.
The lawsuit contradicts assertions by the UGA Athletic Association that on the night of the crash LeCroy had not been authorized to drive an SUV rented by the university to transport recruits and their families around Athens during a weekend in which the football program celebrated its second consecutive national championship.
LeCroy and other recruiting analysts were “commonly instructed they could take their assigned rental SUVs home overnight and leave their personal vehicles parked at the UGA Athletic Association facilities on campus,” according to the lawsuit.
“At the time of the crash,” the lawsuit also says, “LeCroy was operating the subject rental SUV with the permission of the UGA Athletic Association.”
On Thursday, the athletic association released a one-sentence response to Bowles’ suit: “We are reviewing the complaint, but we dispute its claims and will defend the Athletic Association’s interests in court.”
A lawyer for Carter did not immediately respond to Bowles’ lawsuit. The administrator of LeCroy’s estate declined to comment.
Shortly after the crash, the athletic association issued a statement that said staff members had permission to drive the rented SUVs during “recruiting activities only.” The school rents a fleet of large SUVs several times a year when recruits and their families visit the Georgia campus.
“Policies and expectations that were well understood by athletics staff dictated that such rental vehicles were to be turned in at the immediate conclusion of recruiting duties,” the athletic association said in January. “Personal use was strictly prohibited. Therefore, the continued use of the leased car by our staff members after their recruiting duties ended earlier that evening was unauthorized.”
Officials including Kirby Smart, Georgia’s head football coach, have since amplified the statement. “It should have been understood,” Smart said in March, “that you cannot take a vehicle when you’re not doing your duties, and they were not participating in their duties at that time.”
But Bowles’ civil complaint, filed late Wednesday in Gwinnett County State Court by her lawyers, Rob Buck and Phil Boston, includes screenshots of text messages in which athletic association officials gave Bowles and others permission to keep the rented vehicles even after their assigned duties concluded.
In December 2019, for instance, Logen Reed, an associate director of recruiting operations, told Bowles in a text message that “you can take your car home if you need to.”
“Wait,” Bowles responded, “just making sure you mean I can take the SUV with me.”
“Yes!” Reed replied. “Take it home.”
The lawsuit asserts the fatal crash would not have occurred if the athletic association had not overlooked what the lawsuit called LeCroy’s “deplorable driving history and habitual operation of motor vehicles at high and unsafe speeds.”
Reed, LeCroy’s supervisor, was a passenger when LeCroy received a ticket for driving 77 mph in a 55-mph zone last October, the lawsuit says. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution previously reported that the citation was LeCroy’s fourth in six years and the second that earned enhanced penalties under the state’s “super speeder” law.
In addition, Bryant Gantt, the football team’s director of player support, asked a court clerk to reduce the speed on the ticket so LeCroy could avoid the super speeder penalties, the Journal-Constitution reported. The clerk declined.
Gantt’s intervention “gave LeCroy an understanding that the association would continue to intervene on her behalf in relation to future speeding violations, thus encouraging and facilitating her high-speed driving and reckless conduct,” the lawsuit says.
The lawsuit also seeks damages from Carter, the former Georgia defensive star who was recently drafted in the first round by the Philadelphia Eagles. Bowles’ lawsuit alleges Carter illegally left the scene without rendering aid to those injured in the crash. The Journal-Constitution reported in March that Carter was present at the time of the crash and returned later at the request of police officers.
Carter in March pleaded no contest to misdemeanor charges of reckless driving and street racing. He paid a $1,013 fine and is serving 12 months of probation, among other penalties.
Carter “was jointly responsible for the crash and had a legal duty to remain on the scene,” the lawsuit says. “Instead, in part obviously fearful of bad publicity and the effect on his NFL draft status, he hoped not to be questioned or take any responsibility for his actions.”
Caption
Credit: CONTRIBUTED
Bowles’ is the second lawsuit stemming from the fatal crash. Willock’s father is seeking $40 million in damages from the university, the athletic association and other defendants, including Carter.
Bowles seeks reimbursement for more than $170,000 in medical bills and unspecified amounts for future expenses, wage loss and mental and physical pain and suffering, as well as punitive damages.
The lawsuit contains a lengthy list of injuries that Bowles sustained in the crash: broken vertebrae and ribs, a fractured clavicle, and broken and cracked teeth; lacerations to her kidney and liver; a punctured and collapsed lung; abdominal bleeding; neurological damage from a head injury that causes severe eye pain; and a spinal-cord injury that could progress to permanent paralysis.
In a statement, Buck, Bowles’ lawyer, said his client is “disappointed that the (athletic) association and its insurers have forced her to resort to litigation to address her life-altering injuries.”
“Tory is deeply saddened by the loss of Devin and Chandler,” Buck’s statement also said. “She greatly appreciates the continued prayers, love and support she is receiving during her difficult recovery.”
Caption
NEWS
By Alan Judd
3 hours ago
Lawsuit claims athletic association made false statements regarding rental vehicle use
A survivor of a fatal car crash that stunned the University of Georgia football program has filed a lawsuit that blames the accident in part on negligence by the university’s athletic association.
The lawsuit, filed late Wednesday by Victoria S. Bowles, a former recruiting analyst for the football team, also says athletic association officials made false public statements about events that preceded the Jan. 15 crash.
In addition to the athletic association, Bowles, who goes by Tory, is suing the estate of Chandler LeCroy, a recruiting analyst who died in the crash, and former Georgia football player Jalen Carter. Police say Carter and LeCroy raced at speeds exceeding 100 mph moments before the crash, which also killed football player Devin Willock. Bowles and Willock were both back-seat passengers. A front-seat passenger, football player Warren McClendon, received minor injuries.
The lawsuit contradicts assertions by the UGA Athletic Association that on the night of the crash LeCroy had not been authorized to drive an SUV rented by the university to transport recruits and their families around Athens during a weekend in which the football program celebrated its second consecutive national championship.
LeCroy and other recruiting analysts were “commonly instructed they could take their assigned rental SUVs home overnight and leave their personal vehicles parked at the UGA Athletic Association facilities on campus,” according to the lawsuit.
“At the time of the crash,” the lawsuit also says, “LeCroy was operating the subject rental SUV with the permission of the UGA Athletic Association.”
On Thursday, the athletic association released a one-sentence response to Bowles’ suit: “We are reviewing the complaint, but we dispute its claims and will defend the Athletic Association’s interests in court.”
A lawyer for Carter did not immediately respond to Bowles’ lawsuit. The administrator of LeCroy’s estate declined to comment.
Shortly after the crash, the athletic association issued a statement that said staff members had permission to drive the rented SUVs during “recruiting activities only.” The school rents a fleet of large SUVs several times a year when recruits and their families visit the Georgia campus.
“Policies and expectations that were well understood by athletics staff dictated that such rental vehicles were to be turned in at the immediate conclusion of recruiting duties,” the athletic association said in January. “Personal use was strictly prohibited. Therefore, the continued use of the leased car by our staff members after their recruiting duties ended earlier that evening was unauthorized.”
Officials including Kirby Smart, Georgia’s head football coach, have since amplified the statement. “It should have been understood,” Smart said in March, “that you cannot take a vehicle when you’re not doing your duties, and they were not participating in their duties at that time.”
But Bowles’ civil complaint, filed late Wednesday in Gwinnett County State Court by her lawyers, Rob Buck and Phil Boston, includes screenshots of text messages in which athletic association officials gave Bowles and others permission to keep the rented vehicles even after their assigned duties concluded.
In December 2019, for instance, Logen Reed, an associate director of recruiting operations, told Bowles in a text message that “you can take your car home if you need to.”
“Wait,” Bowles responded, “just making sure you mean I can take the SUV with me.”
“Yes!” Reed replied. “Take it home.”
The lawsuit asserts the fatal crash would not have occurred if the athletic association had not overlooked what the lawsuit called LeCroy’s “deplorable driving history and habitual operation of motor vehicles at high and unsafe speeds.”
Reed, LeCroy’s supervisor, was a passenger when LeCroy received a ticket for driving 77 mph in a 55-mph zone last October, the lawsuit says. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution previously reported that the citation was LeCroy’s fourth in six years and the second that earned enhanced penalties under the state’s “super speeder” law.
In addition, Bryant Gantt, the football team’s director of player support, asked a court clerk to reduce the speed on the ticket so LeCroy could avoid the super speeder penalties, the Journal-Constitution reported. The clerk declined.
Gantt’s intervention “gave LeCroy an understanding that the association would continue to intervene on her behalf in relation to future speeding violations, thus encouraging and facilitating her high-speed driving and reckless conduct,” the lawsuit says.
The lawsuit also seeks damages from Carter, the former Georgia defensive star who was recently drafted in the first round by the Philadelphia Eagles. Bowles’ lawsuit alleges Carter illegally left the scene without rendering aid to those injured in the crash. The Journal-Constitution reported in March that Carter was present at the time of the crash and returned later at the request of police officers.
Carter in March pleaded no contest to misdemeanor charges of reckless driving and street racing. He paid a $1,013 fine and is serving 12 months of probation, among other penalties.
Carter “was jointly responsible for the crash and had a legal duty to remain on the scene,” the lawsuit says. “Instead, in part obviously fearful of bad publicity and the effect on his NFL draft status, he hoped not to be questioned or take any responsibility for his actions.”
Caption
Credit: CONTRIBUTED
Bowles’ is the second lawsuit stemming from the fatal crash. Willock’s father is seeking $40 million in damages from the university, the athletic association and other defendants, including Carter.
Bowles seeks reimbursement for more than $170,000 in medical bills and unspecified amounts for future expenses, wage loss and mental and physical pain and suffering, as well as punitive damages.
The lawsuit contains a lengthy list of injuries that Bowles sustained in the crash: broken vertebrae and ribs, a fractured clavicle, and broken and cracked teeth; lacerations to her kidney and liver; a punctured and collapsed lung; abdominal bleeding; neurological damage from a head injury that causes severe eye pain; and a spinal-cord injury that could progress to permanent paralysis.
In a statement, Buck, Bowles’ lawyer, said his client is “disappointed that the (athletic) association and its insurers have forced her to resort to litigation to address her life-altering injuries.”
“Tory is deeply saddened by the loss of Devin and Chandler,” Buck’s statement also said. “She greatly appreciates the continued prayers, love and support she is receiving during her difficult recovery.”
The Champ
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Somebody send “the fixer” out to sweep this öööö under the rug.Former UGA football staffer files suit over fatal crash
Caption
NEWS
By Alan Judd
3 hours ago
Lawsuit claims athletic association made false statements regarding rental vehicle use
A survivor of a fatal car crash that stunned the University of Georgia football program has filed a lawsuit that blames the accident in part on negligence by the university’s athletic association.
The lawsuit, filed late Wednesday by Victoria S. Bowles, a former recruiting analyst for the football team, also says athletic association officials made false public statements about events that preceded the Jan. 15 crash.
In addition to the athletic association, Bowles, who goes by Tory, is suing the estate of Chandler LeCroy, a recruiting analyst who died in the crash, and former Georgia football player Jalen Carter. Police say Carter and LeCroy raced at speeds exceeding 100 mph moments before the crash, which also killed football player Devin Willock. Bowles and Willock were both back-seat passengers. A front-seat passenger, football player Warren McClendon, received minor injuries.
The lawsuit contradicts assertions by the UGA Athletic Association that on the night of the crash LeCroy had not been authorized to drive an SUV rented by the university to transport recruits and their families around Athens during a weekend in which the football program celebrated its second consecutive national championship.
LeCroy and other recruiting analysts were “commonly instructed they could take their assigned rental SUVs home overnight and leave their personal vehicles parked at the UGA Athletic Association facilities on campus,” according to the lawsuit.
“At the time of the crash,” the lawsuit also says, “LeCroy was operating the subject rental SUV with the permission of the UGA Athletic Association.”
On Thursday, the athletic association released a one-sentence response to Bowles’ suit: “We are reviewing the complaint, but we dispute its claims and will defend the Athletic Association’s interests in court.”
A lawyer for Carter did not immediately respond to Bowles’ lawsuit. The administrator of LeCroy’s estate declined to comment.
Shortly after the crash, the athletic association issued a statement that said staff members had permission to drive the rented SUVs during “recruiting activities only.” The school rents a fleet of large SUVs several times a year when recruits and their families visit the Georgia campus.
“Policies and expectations that were well understood by athletics staff dictated that such rental vehicles were to be turned in at the immediate conclusion of recruiting duties,” the athletic association said in January. “Personal use was strictly prohibited. Therefore, the continued use of the leased car by our staff members after their recruiting duties ended earlier that evening was unauthorized.”
Officials including Kirby Smart, Georgia’s head football coach, have since amplified the statement. “It should have been understood,” Smart said in March, “that you cannot take a vehicle when you’re not doing your duties, and they were not participating in their duties at that time.”
But Bowles’ civil complaint, filed late Wednesday in Gwinnett County State Court by her lawyers, Rob Buck and Phil Boston, includes screenshots of text messages in which athletic association officials gave Bowles and others permission to keep the rented vehicles even after their assigned duties concluded.
In December 2019, for instance, Logen Reed, an associate director of recruiting operations, told Bowles in a text message that “you can take your car home if you need to.”
“Wait,” Bowles responded, “just making sure you mean I can take the SUV with me.”
“Yes!” Reed replied. “Take it home.”
The lawsuit asserts the fatal crash would not have occurred if the athletic association had not overlooked what the lawsuit called LeCroy’s “deplorable driving history and habitual operation of motor vehicles at high and unsafe speeds.”
Reed, LeCroy’s supervisor, was a passenger when LeCroy received a ticket for driving 77 mph in a 55-mph zone last October, the lawsuit says. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution previously reported that the citation was LeCroy’s fourth in six years and the second that earned enhanced penalties under the state’s “super speeder” law.
In addition, Bryant Gantt, the football team’s director of player support, asked a court clerk to reduce the speed on the ticket so LeCroy could avoid the super speeder penalties, the Journal-Constitution reported. The clerk declined.
Gantt’s intervention “gave LeCroy an understanding that the association would continue to intervene on her behalf in relation to future speeding violations, thus encouraging and facilitating her high-speed driving and reckless conduct,” the lawsuit says.
The lawsuit also seeks damages from Carter, the former Georgia defensive star who was recently drafted in the first round by the Philadelphia Eagles. Bowles’ lawsuit alleges Carter illegally left the scene without rendering aid to those injured in the crash. The Journal-Constitution reported in March that Carter was present at the time of the crash and returned later at the request of police officers.
Carter in March pleaded no contest to misdemeanor charges of reckless driving and street racing. He paid a $1,013 fine and is serving 12 months of probation, among other penalties.
Carter “was jointly responsible for the crash and had a legal duty to remain on the scene,” the lawsuit says. “Instead, in part obviously fearful of bad publicity and the effect on his NFL draft status, he hoped not to be questioned or take any responsibility for his actions.”
Caption
Credit: CONTRIBUTED
Bowles’ is the second lawsuit stemming from the fatal crash. Willock’s father is seeking $40 million in damages from the university, the athletic association and other defendants, including Carter.
Bowles seeks reimbursement for more than $170,000 in medical bills and unspecified amounts for future expenses, wage loss and mental and physical pain and suffering, as well as punitive damages.
The lawsuit contains a lengthy list of injuries that Bowles sustained in the crash: broken vertebrae and ribs, a fractured clavicle, and broken and cracked teeth; lacerations to her kidney and liver; a punctured and collapsed lung; abdominal bleeding; neurological damage from a head injury that causes severe eye pain; and a spinal-cord injury that could progress to permanent paralysis.
In a statement, Buck, Bowles’ lawyer, said his client is “disappointed that the (athletic) association and its insurers have forced her to resort to litigation to address her life-altering injuries.”
“Tory is deeply saddened by the loss of Devin and Chandler,” Buck’s statement also said. “She greatly appreciates the continued prayers, love and support she is receiving during her difficult recovery.”
savbandjacket
Dr. SBJ
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MOAR!
swampsting
Now with incredulous facial expression
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UGa's deputy athletic director for academics and student development is leaving.
Says he is burnt out.
Says he is burnt out.
The Champ
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Same story, but here is espn article: https://www.espn.com/college-footba...orgia-staffer-sues-school-eagles-jalen-carter
Supersize that order mutt
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Love that it's going national and that the Bowles actually released it to the media before she did to the school, thus preventing another coverup. One would think that at some point the Univ pres would say, "Enough is enough; this is all damaging the reputation of the school as a whole," and then step in and do something about it, namely firing some people.