Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice’s attorneys responded to the civil lawsuit brought against him by Edvard Petrovskiy and Irina Gromova regarding the high-speed crash that occurred in late March.
Rice and his former SMU teammate, Theodore Knox, are facing jail time in addition to the civil lawsuit. Rice is facing eight felony charges in relation to the incident.
Kansas City Chiefs WR Rashee Rice is being sued for millions
Per Adam Teicher with ESPN, Rice and Knox are being sued for $1 million in actual damages and $10 million in punitive damages by Petrovskiy and Gromova. They are asking for $71,122.69 for actual damages:
In the lawsuit, Petrovskiy and Gromova claim injuries that include brain trauma, cuts to the face requiring stitches, bruises, disfigurement and internal bleeding.
They are asking for actual damages that include medical care, physical pain and suffering, loss of earning capacity, mental anguish and property damage of $71,122.69.
Rice’s attorneys submitted an original answer and general denial
According to Dallas County court records, on May 9, Rice’s attorneys, Craig A Capua and Royce West submitted an original answer and general denial to the lawsuit. They deny the allegations brought by the plaintiffs in the original petition.
“Pursuant to the Texas Rule of Civil Procedure 92, Defendant Rice generally denies each and every, all and singular, the allegations contained in Plaintiff’s Original Petition, along with any other pleading seeking affirmative relief subsequently filed by Plaintiff in this lawsuit, whether amended, supplemental, and/or otherwise, and Defendant Rice hereby demands strict proof by a preponderance of the credible evidence,” they wrote.
Rice requested a trial by jury. He requested that the suit be “dismissed with prejudice.”
On May 10, Judge Ashley Wysocki scheduled a scheduling conference hearing for July 12.
In April, Rice took responsibility for his part in the crash
Per a transcript via Sports Illustrated of Rice’s comments on his Instagram story in April, Rice took full responsibility for the crash incident:
“Today I met with Dallas PD investigators regarding Saturday’s accident. I take full responsibility for my part in this matter and will continue to cooperate with the necessary authorities. I sincerely apologize to everyone impacted in Saturday’s accident,” Rice posted.
He admitted to being one of the drivers in the six-vehicle crash.
Rice has continued to participate with Chiefs teammates in workouts this offseason. The Chiefs stated he would be present with the team during phase one of their virtual workouts that started last month.
According to WFAA Dallas, West defended Rice’s character in a press conference in early April:
West told media members he hadn’t been approached by police about that part of the investigation–but described his client as a kid who made a mistake.
“The fact is you got a 23 year old young man that’s never been in this type of situation,“ West said.
Since the crash in March, Rice is being investigated for another incident. As previously discussed in GH, Dallas police are investigating Rice for allegedly assaulting a photographer at a club last Monday.
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