Georgia defensive tackle Jalen Carter was booked and released by police late Wednesday night amid misdemeanor charges related to a January crash that killed two members of the Bulldogs’ football program.
Carter’s booking comes on the same day the Athens-Clarke County Police Department issued an arrest warrant for the potential No. 1 pick in the 2023 NFL draft. Police say Carter and Georgia staffer Chandler LeCroy, one of the crash’s victims, were racing their respective vehicles before the fatal early-morning incident that also killed Bulldogs offensive lineman Devin Willock and injured two others.
According to Athens-Clarke County records, Carter was booked at 11:33 p.m. for reckless driving and racing. He posted $4,000 bail and was released at 11:49 p.m.
Initially, police said LeCroy’s car left the road and seemed to hit two power poles and multiple trees in the early hours of Jan. 15. Crash investigators said in a statement Wednesday their investigation found that LeCroy and Carter “were operating their vehicles in a manner consistent with racing” and said evidence found the two drivers “switched between lanes … drove in opposite lanes of travel, overtook motorists and drove at high rates of speed, in an apparent attempt to outdistance each other.”
Police said LeCroy’s vehicle was going at about 104 miles per hour before the crash, and a toxicology report found her blood alcohol concentration was 0.197. Police said “alcohol impairment, racing, reckless driving and speed were significant contributing factors to the crash.”
The warrant was filed while Carter was at the NFL scouting combine in Indianapolis. He did not appear in front of the media Wednesday and later issued a statement related to the charges.
“It is my intention to return to Athens to answer the misdemeanor charges against me and to make certain that the complete and accurate truth is presented,” Carter said. “There is no question in my mind that when all of the facts are known that I will be fully exonerated of any criminal wrongdoing.”
