ALBANY, N.Y. — The family of a young driver struck and killed by Tony Stewart's car on an upstate New York sprint racing track has filed a wrongful death lawsuit.
The lawsuit filed Friday in Lewis County accuses the NASCAR driver of gross negligence, saying he gunned his engine and put his car into a skid as Kevin Ward Jr. walked onto the track after a crash at Canandaigua Motorsports Park on Aug. 9, 2014. The car struck and killed Ward.
The lawsuit seeks unspecified monetary damages. A grand jury declined to indict Stewart, who called it "100 percent an accident." Stewart is scheduled to make his first appearance at Watkins Glen on Sunday, the anniversary of Ward's death.
Ward family statement in part:
Mr. Stewart is the only named defendant in the lawsuit filed Friday in the 5th Judicial District for the Supreme Court of the State of New York in Lowville. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of Mr. Ward’s parents, Kevin and Pamela, who are represented by trial lawyer Mark Lanier of The Lanier Law Firm.
“Our son was truly the light of our lives and we miss him terribly every day,” Mr. and Mrs. Ward said in a statement. “Our hope is that this lawsuit will hold Tony Stewart responsible for killing our son and show him there are real consequences when someone recklessly takes another person’s life.”
“Kevin Ward would be alive today if not for the reckless and dangerous actions of Tony Stewart, who eventually will have to answer for what he did,” said Mr. Lanier. “The past year has been extremely difficult for Kevin’s mother and father, and they’re still trying to cope with their unimaginable loss.”
Read more top trending stories on wsoctv.com: