NFL plans to ‘ vigorously’ fight Hernandez lawsuit
Just one day after a federal lawsuit was filed against the NFL and the New England Patriots on behalf of the family of former tight end Aaron Hernandez, the league responded strongly against the claims made in the complaint.
“We are reviewing the lawsuit now,” NFL executive vice president of communications Joe Lockhart said Friday in a conference call. “On first blush, we believe the claim will face significant legal issues from the start, and we intend to contest the claim vigorously.”
The 18- page lawsuit was filed in federal court Thursday in Boston and claims that the NFL and the Patriots “were fully aware of the damage that could be inflicted from repetitive impact injuries and failed to disclose, treat or protect him from the dangers of such damage.”
The lawsuit seeks $ 20 million on behalf of Hernandez’s former fiancée, Shayanna Jenkins Hernandez, and their daughter, claiming that the team and NFL deprived Avielle Hernandez of the companionship of her father.
Aaron Hernandez’s attorney, Jose Baez, also announced Thursday that Hernandez had an advanced form of chronic traumatic encephalopathy, following a study from Boston University’s CTE center.
Baez said in a news conference thatHernandez’s situation was “the most severe case they had ever seen in someone of Aaron’s age.” Hernandez, who was 27 when he was found dead in his prison cell after hanging himself with a bedsheet, was serving a life sentence at Souza Baranowski Correctional Center in Shirley, Mass., for the June 2013 murder of Odin Lloyd.
“Any attempt here to paint Aaron Hernandez as a victim, we believe, is misguided,” Lockhart continued. “His personal story is complex. It doesn’t lend itself to simple answers like it’s one thing, or it’s football or anything else, it’s his childhood and growing up. It’s complex, and everyone should resist the urge to unpack this story with a simple explanation. We do have to remember that he was convicted of a homicide and his well- documented behavioral issues long before he played in the National Football League.
“The real victims here are the friends and family of the man who was killed and of those left behind, particularly his young daughter. At the time of the suicide, we talked about the benefits available to ( Jenkins Hernandez) through his NFL service, which involve a number of programs outlined in the ( collective bargaining agreement), which, again, are available to her.”
Lockhart later explained that benefits could include “pensions and some others,” though he was not aware whether Jenkins Hernandez had taken advantage of them.
One issue facing the lawsuit is that Hernandez was not listed among the players who opted out of a concussion settlement with the league.
Language in the settlement states that players whose careers concluded before July 2014 “gave up the right to sue the NFL Parties” unless they opted out of the settlement.
“That is an issue that we’re going to have to look at, whether he was part of the class and chose to join the class or opt out,” Lockhart said. “Our research on that is not complete.”
Because the league first became aware of the lawsuit Thursday, Lockhart said, it was still crafting its strategic response and declined to go into specifics.
When asked whether a settlement was a possibility, however, Lockhart seemed to dismiss that option, saying, “I think fight vigorously is clear.”