According to a report published on Sunday, authorities cited former Miami Hurricanes star Rueben Bain Jr. for driving “in a careless or negligent manner” following a car crash in 2024 in which a passenger later died.
Early on the morning of March 17, 2024, Rueben Bain Jr., a projected top pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, was driving when his SUV crashed on Interstate 95 in South Florida. Destiny Betts, 22, one of Bain’s passengers, who was not wearing a seat belt, later passed away as a result of the injuries she received in the accident.
Documents obtained by The Read Optional reveal three other people were in Bain’s 2021 Land Rover SUV: Betts and fellow Miami Hurricanes football players Wesley Bissainthe and Nyjalik Kelly. After rear-ending another car, Bain’s car veered into a concrete barrier, hit another concrete barrier, and finally came to a stop on the highway shoulder.
After the crash, paramedics rushed Destiny Betts to the Ryder Trauma Center, but she never regained consciousness. She died on June 13, 2024, after spending almost three months in a coma.
All charges and a lawsuit against Rueben Bain Jr. were eventually dropped
The authorities cited Bain for operating the SUV “in a careless or negligent manner,” but according to The Athletic, officers did not administer any field sobriety tests. The court ultimately dismissed the citation for “defective citation” approximately two weeks before Betts died.
The driver of the other vehicle filed a motor vehicle negligence lawsuit against Bain in October 2024, claiming that the crash caused him both physical harm and psychological distress. In June, the other driver voluntarily dropped his case with prejudice.
A year after the accident in which Betts was fatally injured, Bain was cited for “careless driving,” but was again not charged due to a “defective citation,” People reported.
Scouts consider Bain one of the top prospects in this year’s NFL Draft. Mel Kiper Jr. ranks him No. 15 on his Big Board and Brugler’s Top 100 ranks him No. 9. The Read Optional reports, “Multiple league sources confirmed they are aware of the incident and are continuing to investigate. It remains unclear if it will affect Bain’s draft position.”