Legal news for Illinois traumatic brain injury attorneys. High school football coach sued for ignoring player’s serious head injury warning signs.
Illinois brain injury attorney’s alert- a football coach ignored a football player’s traumatic brain injury warning signs.
St. Louis, IL—The family of an East St. Louis Senior High School football player named the football coach and the school district in a lawsuit filed in St. Clair County. The personal injury lawsuit alleges the football player suffered a permanent, stroke-causing, traumatic brain injury (TBI) after the football coach ignored headache complaints and signs of a concussion from the player during a game, as reported by Fox News.
Shanai McLorn filed the lawsuit on behalf of her son, Demond Hunt Jr., who sustained the TBI. McLorn claims the football coach, Darren Sunkett, recklessly endangered football players with his win-at-all-cost attitude. Sunkett is accused of requiring his players to perform contact drills without proper protection equipment, taunting them for complaining of ailments, yelling at players to continue playing even with apparent head injuries, and constant ridicule. McLorn states Sunkett often ridiculed injured players, which created a fear of reporting injuries amongst the players. In addition, Sunkett often failed to notify parents of any injuries their child sustained while engaged in football-related activities.
According to the lawsuit, in July 2008, Hunt suffered a broken collarbone when he was ordered, by Sunkett, to tackle another team member without any protective equipment. This full contact tackle without either team member equipped with protective football gear also caused the other football player to sustain a broken neck. In addition, on October 3, 2008, Hunt suffered a stroke and seizures after a blood vessel in his brain burst while he was on the sidelines of a football game. The lawsuit further alleges Hunt was given a faulty football helmet, which did not have properly inflated lining to protect the athlete’s head. The football coach, the high school athletic director, and the school district’s superintendent would not comment on the lawsuit.
Legal News Reporter: Nicole Howley-Legal news for Illinois lawyers specializing in personal injury claims.
