Charlotte Hornets

LaMelo Ball case: Court filings show how much family wants for fan’s broken foot

Court filings reveal how much money a family is asking for in a civil lawsuit accusing Charlotte Hornets star and controversial driver LaMelo Ball of running over and breaking a child fan’s foot outside the Spectrum Center years ago.

Angell Joseph’s mother filed a lawsuit against the Hornets and Ball asking for a previously undisclosed amount in damages for her child, who she says now suffers from “debilitating” complex regional pain syndrome. In a late May motion asking for a judge to divide parts of the boy’s claims ahead of trial, Ball’s attorneys revealed the boy and his mother last demanded $3.75 million.

A trial in the case is scheduled to begin June 15. A judge previously dismissed the Hornets from the case.

Ball denies he ever ran over the 12-year-old boy’s foot. He has hired several attorneys to fight the lawsuit. He has also asked the boy and his family to pay his attorneys fees.

In April, a Mecklenburg County Superior Court judge ordered Ball to stop canceling his depositions, or legal interviews. Cameron deBrun — who represents Joseph and his mother, Tamaria McRae — said he spent 60 hours over four attempts trying to schedule a time to talk to Ball and compel discovery in the case.

In his late May motion, deBrun said those scheduling issues cost $21,000.

Christi Hunoval, representing Ball alongside Erin Young, said that mischaracterized what really happened. One deposition was rescheduled when Ball needed to see a doctor after a May 2025 injury. Another was rescheduled due to confidentiality issues with Ball being a “public figure,” Hunoval wrote.

Hunoval also represents Ball’s manager, Jermaine Jackson, in a separate civil case involving Jackson’s eviction from the uptown apartment he rents. The apartment neighbors Ball’s, and, like Ball’s, it used to be owned by Carolina Panthers star quarterback Cam Newton.

Jackson was evicted in Mecklenburg County’s small claims court, and a civil lawsuit in superior court remains pending.

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This story was originally published June 2, 2026 at 9:54 AM.

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Julia Coin
The Charlotte Observer
Julia Coin covers courts, legal issues, police and public safety around Charlotte and is part of the Pulitzer-finalist team that covered Tropical Storm Helene in North Carolina. As the Observer’s breaking news reporter, she unveiled how fentanyl infiltrated local schools. Michigan-born and Florida-raised, she studied journalism at the University of Florida, where she covered statewide legislation, sexual assault on campus and Hurricane Ian in her hometown of Sanibel Island. Support my work with a digital subscription
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