5 ex-Kansas City Chiefs sue football team

A lawsuit was filed by five professional football players who used to play for the Kansas City Chiefs. The plaintiffs claim the team lied about the risks of head injuries and hid the injuries during 1987 and 1993, when there was no collective bargaining agreement in position in the NFL.

The former players claim to be suffering from different types of head injuries. They listed latent brain disease because of multiple concussions and post-concussion syndrome that they got while playing for the Chiefs. They also all claim also to be ailing from chronic traumatic encephalopathy, which can only be diagnosed by examining the brain after a person dies.

The lawsuit was filed in Jackson County on behalf of the former players all of whom played on defense. It looks to get more than $15,000 in actual and punitive damages. The five players have opted out of a large monetary settlement announced this summer that would recompense former players for their head injuries.

The lawyer for the five men said that the $765 million settlement between the NFL and former players was inconsequential and said it offers compensation only to the former players with the most serious brain injuries. None of the five former players who he represents would get monetary compensation under that deal, he said.

According to reports, one of the men who played linebacker for the Chiefs from 1988 to 1993 said at a press conference he didn’t know that continuing to play in games after getting a head injury would result in permanent damage.

The lawsuit stated that the Chiefs ignored decades of studies showing that concussions cause long-standing brain damage, instead describing the injuries in less-important terms It accuses the team of lying to players, telling them that concussions were not serious injuries.

A series of former NFL players and other athletes who suffered concussions have been diagnosed after their deaths with CTE in recent years, including two players who both committed suicide.

If a person believes he or she has an injury which happened at work, it would be prudent to contact an attorney experienced in those matters.

Source:  denverpost.com, “5 former Chiefs sue team over head injuries” Bill Draper, Dec. 03, 2013

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