SYRACUSE, N.Y. – The Onondaga County (New York) district attorney told Yahoo Sports on Thursday morning that there will not be any immediate legal ramifications after Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim’s role in a tragic and fatal car accident on Wednesday night. “Not from law enforcement, unless something extraordinary or bizarre comes to our attention that we’re not aware of,” said district attorney William J. Fitzpatrick in a telephone interview. “In terms of a strict reconstruction of the accident, it’s just a tragedy.” Fitzpatrick said that Boeheim struck a pedestrian who’d exited a vehicle on I-690 East at 11:22 p.m. on Wednesday night. Police identified the victim as 51-year-old Jorge Jimenez. Fitzpatrick said that there was a single-car accident that resulted in the car hitting the guardrail. All four occupants exited the car, and police said the accident occurred as Boeheim was attempting to avoid hitting the car. (The cause of the initial single-car accident wasn’t known.) Fitzpatrick said that Boeheim stopped and immediately attempted to render assistance. He called Boeheim “completely cooperative” with police and noted that he took a breathalyzer that came up with no trace of alcohol. “All indications are that it was an appropriate speed for the conditions,” Fitzpatrick said. Boeheim released a statement on Thursday morning: “I am heartbroken that a member of our community died as a result of last night’s accident. Juli and I extend our deepest sympathies to the Jimenez family. Out of respect for those involved, I will not be providing further comment at this time.” Police say Syracuse men’s basketball coach Jim Boeheim struck and killed a 51-year-old man walking outside his vehicle on a highway near Syracuse, N.Y., on Wednesday, Feb. 20, 2019. (AP file photo) Syracuse police officials and Fitzpatrick held a joint press conference on Thursday afternoon to offer more detail on the fatal accident. Syracuse police chief Kenton Buckner reiterated Fitzpatrick’s earlier sentiment that he doesn’t anticipate any criminal charges for anyone involved in the accident. There’s still an ongoing investigation, including trying to determine variables like Boeheim’s speed. Story continues “Based upon what we know today,” Buckner said, “we have a tragic accident that resulted in a gentleman’s death that happens to involve a high-profile individual.” The police offered more detail about the crash, including that Boeheim was driving over a hill and had to react quickly to seeing a black Dodge Charger perpendicular to the guard rail. Boeheim attempted to avoid the car, which was stretched across parts of two highway lanes. The four people in the car, including Jimenez, were attempting to cross the highway to seek safety on the median. Along with Jimenez’s death, one other person in the car was injured. Police complimented Boeheim’s actions after the accident, including calling 911 and using his cell phone flashlight to flag down cars while Jimenez was being attended to. “Mr. Boeheim did exactly what he was supposed to do,” Buckner said. Fitzpatrick outlined the next steps expected to take place, including determining the cause of the original accident, status of the driver and an autopsy. “We’ll take final statements and do an accident reconstruction and find out where as best we can the deceased was standing,” he said. “Whether or not there are any skid marks. It’ll be difficult to determine because of the condition of the road.” While it’s very early in the process, the most likely legal outcome would be a civil lawsuit for monetary damages. “In terms of if he’ll be sued, I can’t answer that,” Fitzpatrick said. “Whenever anyone asks me, ‘Can I sue?’ I say, ‘Stop, I don’t need to hear the rest of it.’ The answer is yes.” There will also be a psychological impact on Boeheim for his role in the tragedy. “Different people handle it different ways,” Fitzpatrick said. “I’ve seen it a lot in 40 years. He’s a good guy, and I’m sure it’s going to affect him.” Boeheim, 74, has been the head coach at Syracuse for 43 years, won the 2003 national championship and led the program to five Final Fours. He’s essentially lived in or around the city since enrolling at Syracuse University in 1962 and has become the community’s most recognizable figure. Syracuse athletic director John Wildhack released a statement on Thursday morning: “We extend our deepest condolences to all impacted by this tragic accident. Coach Boeheim is in contact with local authorities and cooperating fully. Out of respect for the grieving, there will be no further comment at this time.” More from Yahoo Sports: • State of emergency: Lakers ‘concerned about LeBron’ • ESPN exposes extent of NBA ref’s betting scandal • Brown: Padres’ simple reason for signing Machado • Sign up for 2019 Yahoo Fantasy Baseball today<doc-sep>Legendary Syracuse men’s basketball Jim Boeheim was involved in a fatal car accident Wednesday night, striking and killing a pedestrian, a New York district attorney told local radio. Boeheim was driving in bad weather when he hit a man who was already outside of his vehicle and involved in a separate crash, Onondaga County District Attorney Bill Fitzpatrick told WSYR. There were three other people reportedly involved in the separate crash. FLYING STUFFED ANIMAL COSTS GEORGIA UPSET WIN OVER MISSISSIPPI STATE Boeheim attempted to avoid the vehicle but ended up hitting the man, police said. Boeheim’s accident occurred shortly before 11:30 p.m. The crash occurred hours after the Orange upset No. 18 Louisville, 69-49, at the Carrier Dome. Fitzpatrick told the station Boeheim went right to the police after the crash. He was not under the influence of drugs and alcohol at the time of the crash, Syracuse.com reported. The victim was later identified as 51-year-old Jorge Jimenez, according to WSYR. Boeheim released a statement later Thursday. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP "I am heartbroken that a member of our community died as the result of last night's accident," the statement read. "Juli and I extend our deepest sympathies to the Jimenez family. Out of respect for those involved, I will not be providing further comment at this time."<doc-sep>Syracuse basketball coach Jim Boeheim will be on the sideline Saturday night against Duke. Boeheim was involved in a fatal car accident late Wednesday night when he tragically struck somebody who had been in a crash moments before exiting their vehicle. The accident won’t stop him from coaching his guys today against the Blue Devils. (RELATED: Syracuse Coach Jim Boeheim Kills A Man During Car Accident) NBC Sports reported the following Friday: Jim Boeheim will coach Syracuse against top-ranked Duke on Saturday night, his team’s next game after Boeheim struck and killed a pedestrian on a darkened highway. Syracuse athletic director John Wildhack said in a release Friday that Boeheim will resume coaching duties three days after the crash This is pretty remarkable. I can’t imagine there’s too many people out there who could be involved in a fatal car accident and then go right back to doing their job. It doesn’t seem like that’d be an easy decision at all. It’s also worth pointing out that Boeheim’s reported actions in the immediate moments after the crash were pretty remarkable. According to Duke Basketball Report, the Syracuse legend immediately put himself in danger by rushing back into traffic in order to alert other cars about the tragic situation. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Syracuse Men’s Basketball (@cuse_mbb) on Dec 1, 2018 at 7:11pm PST You can generally judge a man’s true character by how he behaves in the darkest of moments. Boeheim putting himself in danger in order to help others moments after a tragic car crash is a sign of the type of man he truly is. It should be interesting to watch the broadcast tonight on ESPN. I’m sure they’ll be talking about it nonstop. Let’s all hope he’s able to find peace and move on, and the family of the victim is able to do the same. It’s just an unbelievable tragic situation for everybody involved. Follow David Hookstead on Twitter<doc-sep>Today was an emotional one for Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim. The Hall of Famer led his team against Duke, in front of a record-setting crowd of over 35,000 at the Carrier Dome, just days after being involved in a deadly car accident. On Wednesday night, Boeheim hit 51-year old Jorge Jimenez with his car. The Syracuse resident was declared deceased at the hospital. Jimenez was the passenger of a car that got into a previous accident on Interstate 690 late Wednesday night. He got out of the car, and was hit by the car driven by Boeheim, who was reportedly trying to avoid the stalled vehicle on the highway. After beating Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium, Syracuse fell at the Dome tonight, 75-65. A moment of silence was held for Jimenez before the game. After the game, Jim Boeheim addressed the tragic incident at length, showing serious remorse and empathy for the Jimenez family. Boeheim discussed the game as well, of course, but much of the attention of the post-game press conference was paid to the incident, as you’d imagine. Boeheim: "I want to address the tragic highway accident. First and foremost…" Boeheim is reading a statement to the loved ones of the victim. — SUJuice.com (@TheJuiceOnline) February 24, 2019 Jim Boeheim press conference: my decision to coach this game: all I can say is I felt an obligation to my players and coaches. They understand I did that knowing the full weight of the tragic accident. This is something that will be with me for the rest of my life. — Syracuse Basketball (@syrbasketball) February 24, 2019 Boeheim: Our fans are great. Our fans have always been supportive. I think they know how bad I feel. I think they were here to support me. It’s an unimaginable situation. I can’t describe the feelings I’ve had since Wednesday night. I don’t think I can make anyone understand… — Syracuse Basketball (@syrbasketball) February 24, 2019 Boeheim: "This is something that… that's forever for me… I've always felt in life, you get a lot of things you have to overcome. There's nothing like this… a human life is lost and you're there." — SUJuice.com (@TheJuiceOnline) February 24, 2019 Boeheim: This is never going away. Tuesday it’s not going to be better. It’s not going to be better next month. It’s not going to be better next year. — Syracuse Basketball (@syrbasketball) February 24, 2019 The game after the accident happened to come against one of Boeheim’s best friends in coaching, Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski. Coach K spoke about the atmosphere at the Carrier Dome, and how his friend handled things. Coach K: Jim is my dear friend. I was able to spend a few minutes with him before the game. I’m glad he coached. What the hell else was he supposed to do? That’s what he does. — Syracuse Basketball (@syrbasketball) February 24, 2019 Coach K: "He looked strong and I'm glad he coached… The honoring of the family and the moment of silence… everything was beautiful.." — SUJuice.com (@TheJuiceOnline) February 24, 2019 Coach K: I got a little emotional. He’s not a hugger. He’s not. When he came out, I thought he was swept up in the emotion. That was very emotional for me. I knew he was feeling this. He’s a tough guy. But this guy is a hell of a guy. — Syracuse Basketball (@syrbasketball) February 24, 2019 Coach K on what he offered him: Just love and support. Based on this, this could have happened to anyone. It was a human thing. I’m sorry that they happen but they happen. The only thing to get past it is to do the human things. Our families are close. We’ll help him. — Syracuse Basketball (@syrbasketball) February 24, 2019 As Boeheim said, recovering from this will be a long, long process. Of course, we shouldn’t lose sight of the Jimenez family in this situation. Our thoughts continue to go out to them after this tragedy.<doc-sep>
After a big win against Louisville on Wednesday night, Syracuse basketball coach Jim Boeheim drove home and was in an unfortunate accident that led to the death of a 51-year-old man. The man's vehicle had crashed and when he got out to go seek some help, he was struck by Boeheim's car. The Syracuse coach had no alcohol in his system and it appears as though it was all a freak accident. In a statement, Boeheim said he is "heartbroken that a member of our community has died as a result of last night's accident." According to Sports Illustrated, Boeheim will be on the sidelines coaching on Saturday when his team takes on the Duke Blue Devils, who are the number one team in the nation. The game will be played in Syracuse. John Wildhack, the Athletic Director for Syracuse explained the decision in a statement: "The Jimenez family has suffered a tremendous loss. Our community is shaken. The Boeheim family is heartbroken over what happened, as we all are. This is a very difficult time. I know that Coach Boeheim's players gain strength from him, just as he gains strength from his players. Our entire community gains strength from each other. With this in mind, and after thoughtful consideration, I have respectfully decided that Coach Boeheim will resume his coaching duties later today and will coach in tomorrow night's game against Duke. We continue to extend our deepest sympathies to the Jimenez family as they continue to mourn this tragic loss." Syracuse comes into the game with a record of 18-8.