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The parents of Stanford goalkeeper Katie Meyer who committed suicide have refused to hand over a ‘mirror drive’ of her laptop in their wrongful death lawsuit.
Meyer’s parents Steve and Gina had been ordered by California Judge Frederick Chung to produce a ‘mirror drive’ of her laptop that could contain sensitive information.
According to USA Today, the Meyers had agreed under oath to do this but have ‘backtracked’ and argued they never agreed to give a ‘mirror image’ of their daughter’s computer but only ‘non-privileged information’.
The popular 22-year-old was found dead in her dorm room at Stanford in March of last year, taking her own life after being given a disciplinary letter.
Meyer’s parents Steve, left, and Gina, right, had been ordered by California Judge Frederick Chung to produce a ‘mirror drive’ of Katie’s laptop, seen here in the middle
Meyer, 22, took her own life in February after being handed a disciplinary letter from brass at the university, following an August 2021 incident in which she allegedly spilled coffee on another student athlete
In addressing the relevance of the mirror drive, Judge Chung wrote: ‘The uncomfortable reality is that much of Katie’s private life — including her deepest, darkest thoughts — may be potentially relevant to this case.’
On Tuesday, their attorney Kim Dougherty said the Meyers are ready to comply with the deadline to hand over the drive by the end of October.
The Meyer family filed their suit last November, stating that on the night of her death, Stanford ‘negligently and recklessly’ sent her the formal disciplinary notice.
The letter had come about following an incident in August 2021 in which she allegedly spilled coffee on another student athlete, who needed treatment.
The student, a football player at the school whose identity has not been revealed, at the time had been accused of sexually assaulting one of her teammates, who was a minor at the time.
According to a court filing, a five-page letter sent by email explained her degree was going to be placed on hold less than four months from graduation and the charge could result in her removal from the university.
The court document states: ‘Computer forensics shows that Katie frantically toggled back and forth between the letter and the attachments and searching how to defend a disciplinary complain.’
Meyer immediately responded to the email, noting that she was ‘shocked and distraught’ over the letter.
Steven and Gina, filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the school, claiming their daughter’s suicide was ‘solely in response to the shocking information she received from Stanford’
Meyer’s was the goalkeeper for the Stanford women’s soccer team. The soccer captain, who was also recovering from knee surgery, reportedly received the notice around 7pm on the night she died
In her response, sent minutes after having a Facetime conversation with her parents, reportedly told the school that she had been ‘experiencing anxiety during the disciplinary process,’ which at that point had persisted for more than half a year.
She said she had been ‘scared for months that my clumsiness will ruin my chances of leaving Stanford on a good note,’ and that a mark on her record would hurt her chances to pursue a career in law.
According to her parents’ complaint, the school responded by setting up a counseling session – three days later.
The filing also noted that Stanford’s Counseling and Psychiatric Services were closed when Meyer received the email.
Meyer’s parents say she reported suffering from depression and suicidal ideation at the time she was going through the disciplinary proceeding.
The suit maintains that the school’s use of ‘heavy legal jargon and threatening language ’caused their daughter to ‘suffer an acute stress reaction that impulsively led to her suicide.’
The filing brings claims of wrongful death, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and six other allegations.
Meyer shared a photograph of her with her father Steve and their pet dog shortly before her sudden death
She won an immense amount of awards, including ‘the 2018-2019 PAC12 Championship, the NCAA National Championship in 2019, two College Cup appearances and more during her soccer career
Steven and Gina claim the school ‘ignored’ their daughter’s distress during the seven month disciplinary process, and ‘made no effort whatsoever to check on Katie’s well-being, either by a simple phone call or in-person welfare check.’
Last year, the school’s Assistant Vice President of External Communications, Dee Mostofi, meanwhile, said staff replied to her ‘within the hour’ of her email and that she was ‘offered several available times and had chose[n] one three days later, despite the availability of an earlier appointment.’
Meyer grew up playing the sport she loved, participating in club soccer as a child. She was even considered as an alternate for the U17 World Cup in 2016.
Over the course of her four years at Stanford, Meyer had twice been the women’s soccer team captain and had twice made it to the Pacific-12 Conference’s honor roll, according to Mercury News.
In total, Meyer played in 50 games across three seasons, producing 20 shutouts and winning 34 matches while only allowing 35 goals.
Meyer, of Newbury Park, California , earned national fame in 2019 after she made two critical saves to help the Cardinals win its third NCAA championship (pictured: playing for Stanford)
Her goaltending was one of the main reasons Stanford was able to clench the national championship in 2019, when the team went undefeated with 16 starts and 11 shutouts.
She won an immense amount of awards, including ‘the 2018-2019 PAC12 Championship, the NCAA National Championship in 2019, two College Cup appearances, 2019 College Cup All-Tournament Team, 2019 United Coaches West Region Third Team, 2019, 2020-2021 two-time PAC12 fall academic honor roll and 2021 CoSIDA academic All-District 8,’ among others.
Katie also participated in national teams in Italy and the Netherlands, as well as camps across the world.
If you or someone you love if experiencing suicidal thoughts or actions, call the National Suicide Hotlines number toll-free at 1-800-273-8255.
