Parents of Ben Kredich sue Knox County rescue workers over their son's death

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) – The parents of Ben Kredich, the 24-year-old son of the University of Tennessee swim coach, have filed a lawsuit over their son's death, seeking millions of dollars in damages.

Ben Kredich was struck and killed by a drunk driver while traveling on Kingston Pike in August 2023. According to police reports, the driver, Shannon Walker, had struck Ben Kredich just hours earlier as he was being resuscitated with Narcan by American Medical Response paramedics after an overdose.

Previous reporting: Suspect in fatal crash on Kingston Pike was hospitalized and given Narcan before crash, Knoxville police say

The lawsuit targets several agencies and individuals, including Shannon Walker, AMR, Knox County Emergency Communications District, Park West Medical Center and Shannon Walker's brother, Scott Walker.

Ben Kredich's parents, Nicholas and Kimberly Kredich, claim in the lawsuit that emergency responders, medical personnel and Walker were all involved in their son's death.

According to the lawsuit, none of the men who treated Shannon Walker for his original overdose attempted to call police to stop him from getting back behind the wheel (he was originally found unconscious in his car).

The lawsuit alleges that AMR paramedics, district communications staff and Park West Medical Center staff should have told police that Shannon Walker posed a danger to the public.

Previous reporting: Man accused of murdering Ben Kredich indicted by Knox County grand jury

Instead, the lawsuit says, no one called police and Shannon Walker was allowed to leave the hospital with his brother, who walked him to his car and gave him the keys. Shannon Walker also left the hospital against medical advice, the lawsuit says, but no one on staff thought to call 911 to report him or his condition.

Ben Kredich's parents are demanding five million dollars in compensatory damages and ten million dollars in punitive damages.

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