An attorney for late Miami Marlins pitcher José Fernández says he was unfairly blamed for the 2016 crash that resulted in the death of he and two others.
The attorney made the argument in a Monday legal filing meant to defend the pitcher's estate from a civil lawsuit.
The filing accuses Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission investigators of prematurely concluding that Fernández was responsible and then altering or ignoring evidence that pointed to the contrary.
That investigation found Fernández was operating his boat when it hit a Miami Beach jetty.
An attorney for the estates of 27-year-old Emilio Macias and 25-year-old Eduardo Rivero says there's no evidence either of them were operating the vessel.
The filing suggests Fernández may have had his drink spiked.
"From the inception the case, agents decided that José Fernández was the operator and that his blood alcohol level would support the imaginary charges sufficiently so they intentionally failed to consider any evidence provided to them that José Fernández and Eduardo Rivero were the victims of foul play, the two of them unwitting reicipients of a spiked drink or a mickey of sorts," the filing reads.
FWC declined to comment on the filing.