"There were young teenagers who became young, strong women in those moments Sunday night." Jeff Wismer, Assistant Director and Recruiting Coordinator for MidTN Volleyball Club in Smyrna, Tennessee tells KMOX, their community is planning for the future, for their teammate critically injured last weekend by a driver in downtown St. Louis.
Wismer tells KMOX, athletes who have suffered similar tragedies have reached out with advice and offers to help 16-year-old Janae Edmondson with the tough transition when she returns home.
He says the family and broader community has been comforted by the support of the St. Louis Community. Wismer adds, the family will need answers in the days to come, "why was that young man behind the wheel of a car? Why was that young man outside of his house? ...I think justice is something that I'm certain James and Francine Edmonson want for their daughter, and I don't say that in a vengeful way, but I think that's a part of the process for them to move forward." The suspect, 21-year-old Daniel Riley, was already out on bond related to pending robbery and armed criminal action charges from 2020 — and he had repeatedly violated the conditions of his release and his GPS home monitoring more than 50 times.
Wismer says that Janae endured more surgeries this week as a result of the severe injuries that led to amputation of both legs. She had signed to play volleyball with UT Southern. Wismer learned Thursday the university has offered to honor her scholarship.
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