Venus Williams Reaches Settlement With Family of Man Killed in Car Crash

Venus Williams has reached a settlement with the family of the man who died in a Florida car crash she was involved in last year, putting an end to the drawn-out legal process.

TMZ Sports reports that according to court documents filed in Palm Beach County, Florida, that Jerome Barson’s estate and Williams reached an agreement. It’s not clear what damages were involved in the settlement, but documents detail that a financial settlement will cover certain expenses.

Both sides of the wrongful death lawsuit are paying their own attorney fees.

In the collision, Barson’s wife, Linda, was driving and Barson was riding in the passenger seat of the Toyota Accent that T-boned Williams’ car as William drove through a Palm Beach Gardens intersection.

“Ms. Williams entered the intersection on a green light,” Williams’ attorney, Malcolm Cunningham, said in a statement after the initial police report was made public. “The police report estimates that Ms. Williams was traveling at 5 mph when Mrs. Barson crashed into her. Authorities did not issue Ms. Williams with any citations or traffic violations.”

Williams was cleared of criminal charges after investigators determined she was “caught in the middle” of the intersection when her light turned red. Linda Barson had a green light and crashed into Williams’ SUV. Two weeks after the incident, 78-year-old Barson, died from his injuries of head trauma and internal bleeding. Linda Barson was also injured.

An investigation that included video surveillance showed that the tennis star did not violate the other driver’s right of way, the Palm Beach Gardens Police said. “Based upon this investigation and relevant Florida state statutes, no charges will be filed in this case,” the report read.

Cunningham said that the incident was “an unfortunate accident and Venus expresses her deepest condolences to the family who lost a loved one.”

Police determined in December that neither party was at fault in the collision. No criminal charges were filed.

In January, a judge in the wrongful death lawsuit granted the Barson family’s request to subpoena Williams’ phone records to determine if she was driving distracted before the crash.

In July 2017, Williams, 37, broke down in tears at Wimbledon when reporters questioned her about the wreck.

“There are really no words to describe, like, how devastating and — yeah. I’m completely speechless,” she said, as reported by CNN.