Ja'Quayvin Smalls
Friends and former teammates carry Smalls' casket at the 2009 funeral service
Smalls was a former Wando football playerASHEVILLE, N.C. (AP) -- Relatives
of a Western Carolina University football player who died after a 2009 workout
have dropped a wrongful death lawsuit against the school's athletic
personnel.
The lawsuit filed by the father
of Ja'Quayvin Smalls was voluntarily dismissed Thursday. Smalls' family had been
seeking money from the school's coaches and training
staff.
Smalls died in July 2009, hours
after collapsing while running during his first preseason workout. The junior
defensive back from Wando, S.C., had just transferred from Georgia Military College.
An autopsy showed Smalls had an
enlarged heart. Doctors also found that sickle cell trait and exertion
contributed to his cardiac arrest.
Just before Smalls' death, the
NCAA recommended that all of its member schools test athletes for the sickle
cell condition. Western Carolina started
testing after Smalls' death.
