Georgia fires football staffer who filed lawsuit against school over deadly crash; lawyers claim retaliation
The University of Georgia has terminated Victoria “Tori” Bowles, the football recruiting staffer who survived the car crashed that killed football player Devin Willock and another football staffer.
The decision to fire Bowles comes just a few weeks after she took legal action against the university’s athletic association. The university explained Bowles’ dismissal saying she refused to cooperate with an internal investigation into the deadly crash.
“Applicable policies require university employees to cooperate with internal investigations,” a university statement to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution said.
“Over the course of several months, Ms. Bowles was asked — on numerous occasions — to speak with our investigators and provide information, and through her attorney, she repeatedly refused to cooperate. As a result, we were ultimately left with no choice but to terminate her employment.”
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The Georgia Bulldogs’ flag after a score in Athens, Ga. (Michael Wade/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Bowles’ attorneys claim her firing was retaliation for her lawsuit. Former Georgia football player and current Philadelphia Eagles rookie Jalen Carter was also named in the lawsuit.
The Jan. 15 crash killed the 20-year-old Willock and the driver of the Ford Expedition, 24-year-old Chandler LeCroy. According to police, the vehicle reached speeds of over 100 mph while street racing with Carter.
Shortly before 3 a.m., the SUV veered off the side of the road and slammed into utility poles and trees on the driver’s side where both LeCroy and Willock were sitting, an Athens-Clarke County Police report showed.
The crash happened just hours after the Georgia football team’s parade and celebration to commemorate its second consecutive College Football Playoff national championship.
Authorities later confirmed LeCroy’s blood-alcohol level was more than twice the legal limit in Georgia.
Georgia Bulldogs helmets at Sanford Stadium in Athens, Ga. (Michael Wade/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
The vehicle was leased by the athletic department. The suit claims the Georgia Athletic Association entrusted the rented SUV to LeCroy and was aware she had at least two “super speeder” violations among four speeding tickets prior to the crash.
The athletic association said staff members were authorized to use rental vehicles for recruiting purposes only.
“Under no circumstances were recruiting staff authorized to use rental cars to drive at excessive speeds while intoxicated,” it said in a statement.
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Another Georgia player, Warren McClendon, sustained only minor injuries in the accident. Bowles, who was sitting in the backseat next to Willock, sustained serious injuries, including lumbar and rib fractures, a spinal cord injury and lacerations to the kidney and liver, her lawsuit stated. She also sustained a closed head injury with neurological damage and severe eye pain.
Bowles went on paid medical leave shortly after the crash and was later placed on unpaid leave, the Journal-Constitution reported.
Sanford Stadium in Athens, Ga. (Scott Cunningham/Getty Images)
Rob Buck, an attorney representing Bowles in her lawsuit, said the university has engaged in a “campaign of intimidation” against his client, whose job paid less than $12,000 a year.
“Tory, like all other perceived liabilities to the football program, became expendable to UGA, and despite her loyalty and meager salary, has been steamrolled,” Buck said.
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Carter was sentenced to 12 months probation and was ordered to pay a $1,000 fine. In March, he entered a no contest plea for the misdemeanor charges of reckless driving and racing.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
