Venus Williams broke down in tears Monday when asked about a car accident in which she was involved that left a man dead earlier this month.
The emotional press conference came after Williams beat Elise Mertens in the first round at Wimbledon.
“There are really no words to describe, like, how devastating and — yeah," Williams said. "I'm completely speechless. It's just — yeah, I mean, I'm just ..." she said, then choked up, ESPN reported. She then whispered, “Maybe I should go,” and left the podium.
The moderator then said, “She can’t say anything more about this, so I would ask you to respect her wishes, please,” Us Weekly reported. She returned later to answer questions not about the accident.
Williams is being sued by Jerome Barson’s estate after he passed away June 23, 14 days after the accident. Barson’s wife also was injured in the crash and suffered broken bones.
Williams spoke out on Facebook about the accident on Friday. “I am devastated and heartbroken by this accident,” she wrote. “My heartfelt condolences go out to the family and friends of Jerome Barson and I continue to keep them in my thoughts and prayers.”
Williams was found to be at fault for the car accident, but was not charged or cited for any traffic violations.
Twitter thought the reporters should have left her alone and stuck to tennis questions during the interview.
© 2019 Newsmax. All rights reserved.