"He started running around at the age of 3 with a basketball," said Butts. "He enjoyed the game so much. He could have been going to the NBA or overseas. He didn't care. He just wanted to play."
Devin Butts, 22, was a senior student at North Carolina Central when his life was unexpectedly cut short.
READ MORE | See the full lawsuit here (.pdf)
"The thoughts are always running rampant. Little smells remind you of him. I know it's corny, but it's true," his father said.
ABC11 took a closer look at the 19-page lawsuit filed by the family. In the lawsuit, attorneys for the family state that the evening of April 30, 2023, Butts was reportedly with three of his teammates after hours inside McDougald-McLendon Arena when he went into cardiac arrest. The paperwork said no automated external defibrillators (AEDs) were located on or near the basketball court, and the only AED on the property was locked inside the athletic training room in a different part of the building.
The document also said Devin Butts was without oxygen for 18 minutes before Durham County EMS arrived. Though they were able to restore his heartbeat, he suffered severe brain damage and died days later at Duke University Hospital.
"We're seeking transparency and accountability," said Jason Burton with Burton Law Firm. "We believe the university as a whole is at fault. There were failures at multiple levels of the administration that ultimately allowed this to happen."
The lawsuit lists the former acting chancellor, the current athletic director, head coach of the men's varsity basketball team, facilities and operations manager, and chief of campus police. Attorneys state that they believe all of those individuals were individually and collectively responsible for oversight and management of NCCU's athletic program, including access to campus athletic facilities and the safety and welfare of NCCU student-athletes.
According to Burton, the family is seeking $1 million in damages, citing negligence and wrongful death. In the lawsuit, the family claims that Devin was denied essential, life-saving medical treatment that more likely than not would have restored his heartbeat to normal rhythm following the cardiac arrest.
Derex Butts would like to see major changes from NCCU following his son's untimely death.
"I'd like to see all basketball players or any sport learn CPR and basic first-aid," he said.
North Carolina Central University released the following statement:
North Carolina Central University officials are aware of the lawsuit, which stems from an incident that occurred in 2023. As a matter of policy, the university does not comment on pending legal proceedings.