The family of former San Diego Chargers and NFL linebacker Junior Seau is suing the NFL, helmet company Riddell and other parties for not disclosing the side effects of repeated head trauma from playing the game, the Boston Globe reports. Seau committed suicide last May and was found to have Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE), a condition caused by repeated blows to the head.
The Seau Family filed suit in San Diego's state court, but the league wants to move it to Philadelphia where more than 4,000 smilar cases have been filed by former NFL players and their families. The league wants the cases dismissed, believing that the NFL's collective bargaining agreement takes care of properly disclosing important information about head trauma.
"We know this lawsuit will not bring back Junior," the family said in a statement after the suit was processed. "But it will send a message that the NFL needs to care for its former players, acknowledge its decades of deception on the issue of head injuries and player safety, and make the game safer for future generations.
The family believes the league failed to relay vital health information about the dangers of head injuries to its past and current players. They also said the league insisted that collisions of all kinds are a part of the game, even those that may lead to short- or long-term health conditions. The suit is for an undisclosed amount of money.
Seau was a 10-time NFL All-Pro and made 12 Pro Bowls. He spent more than a decade in San Diego before playing the final seven years of his career split between the Miami Dolphins and the New England Patriots.
This USA Today piece suggests that Seau may have had well over 1,000 concussions during his NFL career.
The Time Magazine Sports Blog reports that CTE is now detectable in living patients, which would be great news for those needing treatment for the disorder.
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