Former Georgia Tech hoopster and NBA top draft Javaris Crittenton is having a bad week.
After being arrested Wednesday on drug charges in violation of his bond release on a 2011 murder charge, Crittenton was sued for wrongful death Friday morning.
The former Los Angeles Laker faces criminal murder charges in the shooting death of Julian Jones, an Atlanta mother of four.
On Friday, Jones’ mother filed the civil complaint against Crittenton in Fulton County State court hoping to help provide for Jones’ children, her attorney said.
“It’s terribly unlikely he’ll have assets to satisfy the complaint,” wrongful death attorney Roger Orlando told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution by phone Friday morning. “There are four beautiful children that need help. If we can recover anything, it will help those children.”
Jones was gunned down in southeast Atlanta on the night of Aug. 19, 2011 by someone with a high-caliber rifle, police said.
Prosecutors said Crittenton was the gunman, and charged him with murder, aggravated assault and criminal gang activity, claiming he was attempting to retaliate against a rival gang member he believed robbed him at an earlier date.
Following a show of support from family and friends, a Fulton County judge released Crittenton on a $230,000 bond in September 2011.
He was accused of trying to intimidate the Fulton County assistant district attorney prosecuting the murder case in October, and the judge imposed a 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. curfew.
Fulton prosecutors indicted Crittenton on Jan. 10 along with 13 co-defendants on drug charges dating back to June 2012 – when he was free on bond awaiting the murder trial – and he was arrested Wednesday morning at his Fayette County home.
Thursday, he waived his first court appearance for the drug charges and will remain in the Fulton County Jail, authorities said.
Crittenton’s attorney Brian Steel declared his client’s innocence Thursday.
“He’s absolutely not guilty,” Steel said.
On Friday, Orlando said he intends to freeze Crittenton’s assets and go after the homes he said Crittenton owns in Fayette and Fulton counties and Orlando claims were shifted to Crittenton’s mother’s name.
“The first thing I will do is say that he fraudulently transferred homes over to his mother in event of potential litigation,” Orlando said. “I will ask the court to transfer them back.”
Steel was not immediately available for comment on Friday morning.
Orlando said he filed the lawsuit this week because he knew Crittenton could be served with the lawsuit in jail.
Orlando has been working with the Fulton County District Attorney’s office to get all of the criminal files in the murder case, and plans to bring his civil case ahead of the pending murder trial.
Please return to AJC.com for updates.
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