Kyren Lacy's Family Is in Mourning Following the Shocking News of His Death

Former LSU wide receiver Kyren Lacy was found dead in his car on Saturday night in Houston in what ESPN reports was an apparent suicide. Following the news of his death, former fans and those who knew him are now in mourning.

In addition to learning more about what happened to Kyren, many also want to better understand the family he came from. Here's what we know about Kyren Lacy's family.

Kyren, who was 24 at the time of his death, was the son of Kenny Lacy and Kandace Washington and was born in 2000. Kenny is the head trainer at BST Academy LLC, a training facility dedicated mainly to basketball development. Kandace, meanwhile, is a DJ, songwriter, and school counselor. Both Kenny and Kandace are quite active on social media. He also has two siblings, Jayden Allen and Liam Lamar Ward, who are both at least 10 years younger.

Following the news of his son's death, Kenny wrote a post on social media encouraging parents to check in with the mental health of their children.

"Our lives have changed forever, and this will never be OK, but God needed my baby more than he was needed here," Kenny Lacy wrote on Facebook. "This has to be the biggest pill our families have had to swallow, but I know the love and compassion in our families will get us through."

Reports suggest that Kyren died by suicide after being pursued by police on April 12. Harris County Police reported that a female member of his family had called police after Kyren shot a handgun into the floor during a verbal argument. When they arrived at the scene, they learned that Kyren had fled in a vehicle. Their pursuit of Kyren ended when he crashed his car. Police then arrived at his vehicle, only to find Kyren dead from what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

This story is further complicated by the fact that Kyren had been charged with a crime for his involvement in the death of a 78-year-old man in Louisiana in December. He was accused of causing a car crash that led to the man's death and then fleeing the scene without calling authorities or attempting to provide aid. He turned himself in to police in January and was released on a $151,000 bond.

He had yet to be found guilty in the case, though, and a jury was set to begin hearing evidence in the trial on April 14. Kyren's attorney, Matthew Ory, released a statement following his client's death saying that he was "very confident the evidence, after being fully collected and reviewed, would lead to a declination of charges" and that he would "be demanding a full and transparent review of how this investigation was conducted and why."

Kyren's death is a profound tragedy, in part because he had declared for the NFL draft. As his father made clear, it's important to check on the mental health of your children.