Family of Gainesville, Georgia, High School Teen File Wrongful Death Lawsuit Against School Officials After “Freak Accident”
The family of a high school baseball player has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against their son’s school after the teen was fatally struck in the head during batting practice.
The lawsuit was filed by the teen’s parents, David and Yamira Medina, in Georgia’s Hall County Superior Court against Gainesville High School and names the school's principal, Jamie Green; Assistant principal Stacia Dillin; athletic director Adam Lindsey; several baseball coaches, and others.
On November 20, 2023, 17-year-old Jeremy Medina was in his school’s batting cages when the school officials said the “freak accident” happened.
During a press conference, the high school’s principal Jamie Green explained how the teen was hit by a baseball bat. They shared, "As the player followed through on his swing, Jeremy leaned into the net and was struck in the head.”
The blow caused Medina to lose consciousness immediately and he was rushed to a local hospital where he remained in a coma. On December 6th, doctors declared Medina “brain dead.” Six days later, his family announced that their son had passed away because of his injury.
The family says that the school was negligent in its actions, that the named defendants violated the guidelines of the Georgia High School Association, and that their son died because of the unserviced and “illegal” batting practice that took place.
In the state of Georgia, a person can file a claim based on negligence if the defendant had a duty of care to a plaintiff —or in this case, 17-year-old Medina— and the defendant violated their duty and caused an injury that resulted in damages. Georgia takes a modified comparative negligence approach where the injured party can recover damages only if they are found to be 50% or less responsible for the accident.
The family’s attorney, Chloe Dallaire, wrote in the lawsuit, "At the time, there were no adults present and no employees of the school supervising the practice.” The complaint further alleged that "as a direct and proximate result of these Defendants' negligent performance of ministerial duties, Jeremy suffered bodily injuries, emotional injuries, pain, suffering and ultimately, death."
The lawsuit goes on to say "It took over three minutes for any adult to arrive and over seven minutes for CPR to be started." Dallaire adds that the athletic trainer did not have access to the AED and that seven minutes went by before 911 was called.
The family is requesting a jury trial and is seeking over $722,000 in damages for the medical bills, pain and suffering, and funeral and burial costs of their son.
