Parents suing over Gainesville HS baseball player's death after batting cage accident
Jeremy Medina (Credit: Gainesville City School District)
GAINESVILLE, Ga. - The parents of a Gainesville high school baseball player who died after he was hit in the head at baseball practice have filed a lawsuit against the school system and his coaches.
Seventeen-year-old Jeremy Medina was in a coma for more than three weeks after what Gainesville High School officials called a "freak accident" during practice.
According to the school, Medina was at the batting cages on Nov. 20, 2023, when the accident happened.
"As the player followed through on his swing, Jeremy leaned into the net and was struck in the head," GHS principal Jamie Green stated at a press conference on Nov. 29.
Jeremy Medina (
The teen lost consciousness and was rushed to a local hospital. Despite attempts to help, doctors declared him "brain dead" on Dec. 6, 2023. His family announced that he had died six days later.
In a new lawsuit filed in Hall County Superior Court, Medina's parents allege that no adults or school employees were supervising the practice at the batting cage, leading to a slow response after the accident.
"It took over three minutes for any adult to arrive and over seven minutes for CPR to be started," the attorneys for the family wrote in their lawsuit. The lawsuit claims that an athletic trainer did not have access to the AED and that 911 wasn't called for seven minutes.
Medina's parents described the practice as "illegal," arguing that it should not have happened under the guidelines of the Georgia High school Association.
The lawsuit targets the school district, the Gainesvville High School principal Jamie Green, assistant principal Stacia Dillin, athletic director Adam Lindsey, multiple baseball coaches, and more defendants.
The family is asking for damages to pay for their son's pre-death pain and suffering, medical bills, funeral and burial expenses, and any other relief that a jury deems acceptable.