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Family of deceased student athlete reach unprecedented settlement
The family of Imani Bell, a young athlete who died after practicing in nearly 100-degree heat, says it was never about the money for them. However, they hope the $10M settlement will help student athletes in the future.
CLAYTON COUNTY, Ga. - The family of a Georgia high school basketball player who died after practicing in nearly 100-degree heat has settled with the school system for $10 million.
Imani Bell, a 16-year-old junior at Elite Scholars Academy in Clayton County, was participating in required conditioning drills for the girls’ basketball team on August 13, 2019, when she collapsed after running up the football stadium steps and "signaling she was in distress," according to a lawsuit her family filed in February 2021 against administrators at the school. The temperature that day reached up to 97 degrees with a heat index of up to 106.
Imani died later that day of heat-related cardiac arrest and kidney failure, according to the suit. An autopsy of Bell showed she had no preexisting conditions.
Imani Bell (Courtesy of the family
The family’s lawsuit says school officials violated a Georgia High School Association rule banning outdoor practices in weather conditions such as those that Imani faced. It also says they never properly measured the temperature in advance.
"My daughter was loving, she was kind, she included everybody, just very smart and ready for the world. She was ready and she is ready. She will live on through all of us," Bell's mother told FOX 5 in 2019.
Imani Bell (Courtesy of the family
After her death, a grand jury charged two coaches, Larosa Walker-Asekere and Dwight Palmer, with murder and child cruelty. Their criminal case is ongoing.
Tuesday, lawyers for Bell's family announced they have agreed to a $10 million settlement with the Clayton County School System for monetary damages, and burial expenses. They believe it is the largest of its kind in the history of U.S. high school athletics.
"The Clayton County School District is pleased we were able to reach the best possible resolution of this tragic case involving the passing of Imani Bell," a spokesperson for the district said in a statement. "We have all lost a wonderful student. The attention this afternoon is rightfully on her legacy. The School District stands with the community in its commitment to the education and safety of its students."
The settlement will partly fund the Keep Imani Foundation, which will provide scholarships to students.
As part of the settlement, Elite Scholars Academy's gymnasium will be renamed for Bell. A special ceremony is expected to happen Tuesday afternoon to commemorate the renaming.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.