ATLANTA — The father of University of Georgia football player Devin Willock, who was killed in a crash back in January, notified the University of Board of Regents Tuesday that he plans to sue for $2 million in a wrongful death lawsuit, the maximum claim permitted under state law.
11Alive obtained a copy of the legal notice sent by the attorneys for Dave Willock, Devin's father. In the notice, he disputes much of the university's explanation of what led up to the crash and said it was poor oversight by the UGA Athletics Association and the university that contributed to his son's death.
"My life is all scrambled... just living day to day," Dave said over the phone to 11Alive Tuesday. "I’m kind of angry of the cover-up, everyone covering everything up... no one talking the truth."
Devin and UGA staffer Chandler LeCroy were killed in the early morning hours of Jan. 15--LeCroy was driving--only hours after the team celebrated its second-straight National Championship win in Athens. Police said LeCroy was speeding and had a blood alcohol concentration more than twice the legal limit when the incident occurred.
According to the legal notice from Dave Willock's attorneys, Willock believes and the evidence shows that the university is partly responsible. Willock said he will likely file additional lawsuits against the University of Georgia Athletic Association and others.
"Whatever I need to do, I got to do it, because, Number One, I lost my son," Dave said. "Somebody has to pay for his life."
11Alive reached out to the University of Georgia. A spokesperson responded with the following statement:
While we continue to grieve for the Willock family, the demand letter from an attorney for Devin's father is full of inaccuracies. The claims you have identified from the letter are false, and the university disputes them in the strongest terms. Mr. Jackson 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.
Meanwhile, the University System of Georgia, which operates the public universities and colleges across the state, said it was aware of the notice but did not wish to comment on the pending litigation.