Kyren Lacy’s Lawyer Releases Video He Claims Proves the NFL Hopeful Didn’t Cause Fatal Crash Before His Apparent Suicide

NEED TO KNOW

• Kyren Lacy, who died of an apparent suicide in April, was facing felony charges for a car accident that killed a former Marine in December
• The former LSU wide receiver's defense lawyer maintains he is innocent in a new interview, citing surveillance footage and a report from the district attorney's office
• The report concludes that “the evidence submitted in the crash report does not support that Kyren Lacy should have known that his actions were the cause of the crash"

Former LSU wide receiver Kyren Lacy died of an apparent suicide in April, two days before a grand jury was expected to begin hearing evidence regarding a fatal December car accident. Lacy’s lawyer is now sharing a new report and new evidence he claims cements the athlete’s innocence.

At the time of his death, the 24-year-old NFL hopeful was facing felony charges stemming from a Dec. 17 car accident that killed a former Marine Herman Hall, 78. After allegedly fleeing the scene without rendering aid or calling authorities, the Louisiana native was charged with negligent homicide, felony hit-and-run and reckless operation of a vehicle.

The charges came after the Louisiana State Police (LSP) said Lacy "recklessly passed multiple vehicles at a high rate of speed," resulting in the crash that led to Hall’s death, according to ABC affiliate WBRZ. LSP troopers previously said the driver of a vehicle abruptly braked and swerved to avoid a collision with an approaching Dodge Charger, believed to be driven by the late athlete, per the outlet.

On Friday, Oct. 3, Lacy’s defense attorney, Matt Ory, appeared on Louisiana television station HTV 10 to share new information about the accident — and to dispute the claim that Lacy caused the crash. Ory pushed back on the LSP’s investigation, citing a report from the Lafourche Parish District Attorney's Office, as well as footage of the Dec. 17 crash.

The footage, Ory claimed to HTV's Martin Folse, shows that Lacy’s green Dodge Charger arrived on the scene after the collision that resulted in Hall’s death. At the time of the crash, Lacy’s vehicle was over 72 yards behind the other vehicles, Ory said, citing the report from the district attorney's office.

Ory also told Folse that the driver of the vehicle that fatally struck Hall allegedly told authorities that she had actually swerved to avoid a gold truck, not Lacy’s Charger, as was previously reported. Lacy did pass four people illegally in a no-passing zone, Ory later clarified, but he was not “actively passing” any vehicles at the time of the collision.

The report Ory cited also stated that while speaking with a state trooper, the driver that struck Hall’s vehicle “made several statements that do not match the submitted report or written statement,” and instead of questioning her, the trooper “attempted to recap what she was saying, which seems to contradict her statements.”

Among other claims, the attorney also told Folse that a state trooper failed to record part of his conversation with the man who drove the gold truck with his body camera, and when he did, instructed the driver, at least in part, about what to say in his written statement. 

In bodycam footage provided by Ory, the gold truck's driver said the woman driving the car behind him caused the wreck after pulling into the other lane to avoid colliding with the back of the truck. The same driver’s final statement contradicts what he told the trooper in the footage, Ory argued.

Ory also claimed that there was another passenger in Lacy’s car, who troopers were aware of but never questioned about the Dec. 17 accident.

“They knew this,” the attorney said of the LSP: “They have video footage of this individual getting out of the car. Why didn't you ascertain his identity? Why would you not want to hear the person with one of the best views of this incident?”

The district attorney's report, as cited by Ory, concludes that “the evidence submitted in the crash report does not support that Kyren Lacy should have known that his actions were the cause of the crash that happened approximately 72 yards in front of him.”

“At no point in time did he have to slam his brakes. He wasn't even close to the second car. He just eased in. He eased in,” Ory said, adding that the athlete “went straight from there to” football practice.

"But he had no idea he caused this accident, because he didn't think he caused the accident,” continued Ory. “He didn't cause the accident.”

Lacy was found dead after suffering a self-inflicted gunshot wound on April 12 after leading Houston-area police on a chase on that day, the Harris County Sheriff’s Office told PEOPLE at the time.

About a half hour earlier, deputies with the department responded to a weapons disturbance call after a female family member alerted authorities that Lacy had allegedly been involved in a verbal argument with her and had discharged a firearm into the ground. When deputies arrived, they learned Lacy had fled the scene.

Authorities were able to locate his vehicle and attempted to make a traffic stop when Lacy led them on a pursuit before crashing his car. The sheriff’s office added that “preliminary information indicates that Lacy shot himself during the pursuit and prior to the vehicle crashing.”

If you or someone you know is considering suicide, please contact the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by dialing 988, text "STRENGTH" to the Crisis Text Line at 741741 or go to 988lifeline.org.

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