Devin Willock’s Father Seeking $2M in Damages from UGA After Son’s Death in Car Crash | News, Scores, Highlights, Stats, and Rumors

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The legal representation for Dave Willock, the father of late Georgia offensive lineman Devin Willock, sent a legal notice to the Georgia Board of Regents on April 11 that he intends to seek $2 million in damages in a civil lawsuit against the university system, per ESPN’s Mark Schlabach.

The $2 million figure is the maximum allowed by the Georgia Tort Claims Act for claims against the Board of Regents, according to Marc Weiszer of the Athens Banner-Herald.

Willock was killed in a car crash during the early morning hours of January 15 following a celebration and ceremony commemorating Georgia’s second straight national championship.

He was in a UGA-rented Ford Expedition driven by recruiting staffer Chandler LeCroy, who police allege was racing defensive tackle Jalen Carter down Barnett Shoals Road.

Police said LeCroy, who also died in the crash, was driving a vehicle going 104 mph before colliding with a pair of power poles and several trees, per Schlabach.

Police stated that she had a blood alcohol concentration level of .197, nearly two-and-a-half times the legal limit in Georgia.

The notice states that LeCroy “and other recruiting analysts’ sole purpose that weekend would be providing transportation to recruits and players for celebration and recruiting activities, until the evening of Jan. 15 or Jan. 16,” per Weiszer.

UGA athletics stated that LeCroy wasn’t allowed to drive that vehicle because she was off-duty, per Weiszer:

“Messages including via text and email will show that, according to the notice. It also contends that LeCroy and other recruiting staffers were asked and agreed to attend celebrations at several sites in Athens before they agreed to meet players and recruits at Toppers strip club. LeCroy and other attendees consumed alcohol supplied by UGA athletic caterers to attendees at celebration sites, according to the notice.”

The notice also alleges that UGA officials entrusted LeCroy with driving the vehicle despite amassing four speeding tickets over the last six years, according to Schlabach.

“It’s real plain and simple,” William Stiles, an attorney representing Willock, said, according to Weiszer. “There was negligence and there was fault of causing the death of his son.”

The notice stated that the University of Georgia Athletic Association and LeCroy’s estate will be sued separately from the Georgia Board of Regents.

UGA said that the notice is “full of inaccuracies,” and that the “university disputes them in the strongest terms,” per Weiszer.

UGA spokesman Greg Trevor also provided a statement, per Schlabach:

“While we continue to grieve for the Willock family, the demand letter from an attorney for Devin’s father is full of inaccuracies. [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.”

Willock said in the notice he is seeking attorney fees and costs, funeral, burial and medical expenses as well as damages for “pain and suffering arising out of his injuries in the collision before death,” according to Schlabach.