No charges for Venus Williams in fatal Florida auto accident
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Venus Williams' lawyers agree to make the tennis star's texts public from the time of a fatal car crash. (AP)
Tennis star Venus Williams will not be charged in connection with a June traffic accident in Florida that killed one man, police said.
The driver of the Hyundai that struck the tennis star’s SUV also was not charged.
Palm Beach Gardens police determined that neither party violated the right-of-way, Reuters reported, citing the Sun-Sentinel.
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Police initially found Williams at fault, the report said.
However, surveillance video footage released in July showed that Williams entered the intersection lawfully, and that a “dark-colored car” not involved in the collision forced her to stop, trapping her in the intersection before the light turned red, Reuters reported, citing the Sentinel.
When the traffic light changed, the sedan that T-boned William’s Toyota Sequoia had a green light.
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That sedan carried passenger Jerome Barson, 78, who died 13 days after the June 9 car crash, the report said. His wife, Linda Barson, 68, was driving the vehicle.
Jerome Barson died of complications from blunt traumatic injuries, while Linda Barson suffered broken bones, the Palm Beach Post reported.
Williams, 37, was not injured, the Sun Sentinel reported.
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“I was caught in the middle. I never saw that car coming,” Williams told an officer at the scene, the newspaper reported.
Meanwhile, the Barson family has filed a wrongful death suit against Williams, the report said.
Williams -- a seven-time Grand Slam champion and older sister of tennis star Serena Williams -- posted on Facebook that she was “devastated and heartbroken” by the crash.
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“My heartfelt condolences go out to the family and friends of Jerome Barson and I continue to keep them in my thoughts and prayers,” she wrote.