All -
I've read the complaint that Tori Bowles filed today. Below are my thoughts. As with the Willock suit, I'm happy to answer question, but I'm not going to speculate about facts that aren't in the public record (such as "she knew Chandler was drunk and still got in the car!") . That's for a different thread, not this one. Also, I mostly skimmed this complaint for new facts regarding the use of the car and Bowles' injuries and did not read as much about the details of that evening because I think they've been pretty widely reported on.
Parties
Victoria S. Bowles is the only plaintiff
The Defendants are UGAA, Jalen Carter, Breadman Jalen, and Chandler Lecroy's estate. Unlike the Willock Suit, this case does not sue Toppers or the dealership which gave Jalen his car.
Ms. Bowles has competent counsel who is experienced in high-value cases.
Venue
This case was filed in Gwinnett because that's where the executor of Chandler's estate is. Suffice it to say, her estate is in this until the bitter end because the plaintiff wants this case in Gwinnett as it is extremely plaintiff-friendly.
New Relevant Facts
The big issue is about the permissive use of the car. The night of the crash, Lecroy told Bowles "I was told that I could keep [the SUV] until tomorrow". The complaint says that this "was consistent with Ms. Bowles' own prior experience."
The complaint has a photo of a text between Bowles and Logen Reed (her supervisor) from December 13, 2019 where she was told she could take a rental SUV home with her. There is also a text from Anna Courson to what appears to be the entire recruiting host staff from March 19, 2022 where she tells them they can all return their rental vehicles at 11 a.m. Sunday following a recruiting weekend. There's a similar text from Ms. Courson from April 16, 2022 saying "We MUST have your keys back by 11 AM tomorrow" meaning on a Sunday after a recruiting weekend. There's yet another from May 20, 2022 from Ms. Courson.
There's yet another thread from July 30, 2022 where Ms. Courson says "If y'all are using your car tonight can you please make sure the keys are back in my office tonight or tomorrow?"
Essentially, there are ample facts to show that it was a common practice for the recruiting hosts to keep the cars through a recruiting weekend and for personal use.
The complaint says that on January 14, 2023, Lecroy and Bowles actually ran into Ms. Courson downtown at 10 p.m. along with other UGAA staff who saw them in the rental SUV.
The complaint says that Bowles "did observe Lecroy drink limited amounts of alcohol...[but] she did not observe Lecroy consume enough alcohol..." to make her think Lecroy was drunk. The complaint says Bowles and Lecroy did not hang out at Toppers (this is consitent with the Willock complaint).
Claims
Negligence against UGAA
Negligence and Gross Negligence against Carter and Breadman for racing
Negligence and Gross Negligence against Chandler
Punitive damages against UGAA for negligent entrustment and against Carter for racing/leaving the scene.
Injuries
Tori suffered three lumbar "burst fractures"
Five other fractured vertebrae
10 broken ribs
A broken collarbone
A kideny laceration
A liver laceration
A collapsed lung
There are more, but those are the main ones. These injuries are extremely severe and could affect her the rest of her life. She has $171,000 in medical bills to date and has not been able to work since, so she has around $7000 in lost wages.
Other notes
There's a picture of the SUV post-accident that i won't post here. It looks like a crumpled up tuna can.
Analysis
This is a well-written, detailed complaint. UGAA should have gotten its shit together before issuing all those statements about Chandler not being able to use the car for personal use, because there's evidence to suggest that while that was the written policy, it was not the actual policy. This case is worth a lot of money in Gwinnett County. In March, a motorist had about $80,000 in medical bills, was "pain free" at trial, and received a $1m verdict in Gwinnett.
If this got to a Gwinnett County jury, $2m is probably the floor.
I've read the complaint that Tori Bowles filed today. Below are my thoughts. As with the Willock suit, I'm happy to answer question, but I'm not going to speculate about facts that aren't in the public record (such as "she knew Chandler was drunk and still got in the car!") . That's for a different thread, not this one. Also, I mostly skimmed this complaint for new facts regarding the use of the car and Bowles' injuries and did not read as much about the details of that evening because I think they've been pretty widely reported on.
Parties
Victoria S. Bowles is the only plaintiff
The Defendants are UGAA, Jalen Carter, Breadman Jalen, and Chandler Lecroy's estate. Unlike the Willock Suit, this case does not sue Toppers or the dealership which gave Jalen his car.
Ms. Bowles has competent counsel who is experienced in high-value cases.
Venue
This case was filed in Gwinnett because that's where the executor of Chandler's estate is. Suffice it to say, her estate is in this until the bitter end because the plaintiff wants this case in Gwinnett as it is extremely plaintiff-friendly.
New Relevant Facts
The big issue is about the permissive use of the car. The night of the crash, Lecroy told Bowles "I was told that I could keep [the SUV] until tomorrow". The complaint says that this "was consistent with Ms. Bowles' own prior experience."
The complaint has a photo of a text between Bowles and Logen Reed (her supervisor) from December 13, 2019 where she was told she could take a rental SUV home with her. There is also a text from Anna Courson to what appears to be the entire recruiting host staff from March 19, 2022 where she tells them they can all return their rental vehicles at 11 a.m. Sunday following a recruiting weekend. There's a similar text from Ms. Courson from April 16, 2022 saying "We MUST have your keys back by 11 AM tomorrow" meaning on a Sunday after a recruiting weekend. There's yet another from May 20, 2022 from Ms. Courson.
There's yet another thread from July 30, 2022 where Ms. Courson says "If y'all are using your car tonight can you please make sure the keys are back in my office tonight or tomorrow?"
Essentially, there are ample facts to show that it was a common practice for the recruiting hosts to keep the cars through a recruiting weekend and for personal use.
The complaint says that on January 14, 2023, Lecroy and Bowles actually ran into Ms. Courson downtown at 10 p.m. along with other UGAA staff who saw them in the rental SUV.
The complaint says that Bowles "did observe Lecroy drink limited amounts of alcohol...[but] she did not observe Lecroy consume enough alcohol..." to make her think Lecroy was drunk. The complaint says Bowles and Lecroy did not hang out at Toppers (this is consitent with the Willock complaint).
Claims
Negligence against UGAA
Negligence and Gross Negligence against Carter and Breadman for racing
Negligence and Gross Negligence against Chandler
Punitive damages against UGAA for negligent entrustment and against Carter for racing/leaving the scene.
Injuries
Tori suffered three lumbar "burst fractures"
Five other fractured vertebrae
10 broken ribs
A broken collarbone
A kideny laceration
A liver laceration
A collapsed lung
There are more, but those are the main ones. These injuries are extremely severe and could affect her the rest of her life. She has $171,000 in medical bills to date and has not been able to work since, so she has around $7000 in lost wages.
Other notes
There's a picture of the SUV post-accident that i won't post here. It looks like a crumpled up tuna can.
Analysis
This is a well-written, detailed complaint. UGAA should have gotten its shit together before issuing all those statements about Chandler not being able to use the car for personal use, because there's evidence to suggest that while that was the written policy, it was not the actual policy. This case is worth a lot of money in Gwinnett County. In March, a motorist had about $80,000 in medical bills, was "pain free" at trial, and received a $1m verdict in Gwinnett.
If this got to a Gwinnett County jury, $2m is probably the floor.
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