A Thursday press conference that was supposed to include Devin Willock’s parents and an update on potential litigation only featured Roy Willey, a lawyer who read a statement on behalf of the family and didn’t take questions from reporters, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
The press conference — held outside the Athens-Clarke County Courthouse, according to the Athens Banner-Herald — was also pushed back an hour. The Journal-Constitution reported on the confusion earlier in the day, when Dave Willock, Willock’s father, told the outlet, “I don’t know about that” when asked about the press conference.
It is unclear if Willey is representing the family or supporting them, as Willock had an NIL deal with his Go Big Injury Law firm in Georgia.
Dave Willock told the Journal-Constitution that he didn’t have any plans to sue Georgia.
“No, Georgia is working with us,” he said. “We have no reason to do that because they are compensating us 100 percent.”
Sharlene Willock, Willock’s mother, also told 11 Alive News that she had no plans to pursue litigation despite retaining a lawyer.
“I’m here; my son passed away; I’m emotional, dealing with hurt,” Dave Willock told the Journal-Constitution. “I don’t know about that. I haven’t spoken to anyone yet.”
The crash that killed Devin Willock and Chandler LeCroy occurred early Sunday morning. Ceciley Pangburn
Roy Willey spoke at a press conference Thursday on behalf of the Willock family. FOX 5 AtlantaIn his four-minute news conference, Willey, an attorney, said in a statement from the family that “what we would like everyone to know is that Devin was more than just a football player.”
“He was a trusted friend, a supportive and loving brother, a dedicated student and a wonderful son,” the family said in its statement, in part. “Devin’s infectious personality and loving smile is one that no one who met or saw him will ever forget. He was a young man that was not driven solely by football. He was driven by his love of others and his desire to fulfill his future.
“He is someone that we know people who have met him will never forget, not because of this tragedy but because of the positive experiences, influence and interactions they had with him.”
Devin Willock and his Georgia teammates had celebrated their national championship Saturday, just hours before the fatal accident. Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Devin Willock was a 20-year-old offensive lineman for Georgia’s football team. Icon Sportswire via Getty ImagesWillock and 24-year-old Chandler LeCroy were both killed in a car accident early Sunday morning, just hours after the team’s championship parade for its College Football Playoff title. Two others — offensive lineman Warren McClendon Jr. and staffer Victoria Bowles — were also in the car.
Willock wasn’t wearing a seatbelt and was ejected from the car, according to the Associated Press. Excessive speed was a cause of the fatal crash, one of the harrowing details released since the accident.
