Create a free profile to get unlimited access to exclusive videos, breaking news, sweepstakes, and more!
Kansas Basketball Star Hospitalized, Father Dead After Being Struck By Car
Rising Kansas basketball star Ava Jones and her family were walking in downtown Louisville, Kentucky earlier this month when they were struck by an allegedly impaired driver. Her father, William "Trey" Arthur Jones III, died.
William "Trey" Arthur Jones III died from injuries he sustained when he was hit by a car, allegedly driven by a person under the influence of drugs, while he was strolling with his family on a sidewalk in downtown Louisville on July 5., according to the Louisville Courier-Journal. His daughter Ava Jones, a teenage basketball star, and wife Amy remain in the hospital, fighting for their lives.
Ava, a high school basketball standout from Nickerson, Kansas, just gave the University of Iowa her verbal commitment the first week of July. According to ESPN, the family traveled to Louisville from Kansas to see Ava and her club team compete in the women's Run 4 Roses Classic AAU basketball competition. They were hit suddenly when the vehicle drove up onto the sidewalk.
All four Jones family members were taken to the hospital. However, local news station WDRB reported that Trey died from injuries on Thursday. The younger boy was treated for minor injuries, while Ava and her mother Amy remain in critical condition.
A man named Michael Hurley, age 33, has been charged with murder after allegedly striking the family.
The Courier-Journal reported that Hurley, from Lexington, Indiana, was initially charged with four counts of first-degree assault, driving under the influence, and a license possession violation. The murder charge was added after Trey Jones’ death, according to the Louisville Metropolitan Police Department.
Louisville Police said that Hurley had allegedly admitted to taking Hydrocodone prior to the crash and was “so tired he could not make the turn,” reports WDRB. Hurley had pleaded not guilty to his earlier charges before Trey's death.
A GoFundMe page has been set up to help the family and, so far, has raised over $112,000, with a significant number of tributes pouring in to support Ava, Amy, and the entire Jones family recovering from this tragedy.
