School District Not Liable in Football Injury

A Superior Court jury ruled Monday that the Los Angeles Unified School District was not liable for a crippling injury suffered by a Chatsworth High School football player during a game played on a muddy field.

DeWayne Lyons, 22, a defensive free safety on the varsity squad, was left paralyzed after he tackled a Fairfax High School receiver during a playoff game on Dec. 4, 1987.

The lawsuit, filed nearly five years ago, sought damages to pay for medical expenses, lost wages and pain and suffering. An expert testified that medical costs and lost wages alone were worth about $4 million.

“Obviously, we’re disappointed,” Lyons’ attorney, Bruce Broillet, said after the verdict.

Lyons, who is completely paralyzed from the waist down and has only very limited use of his arms and hands, sought the financial award from the school district, claiming it was negligent in allowing the game to proceed after a rainstorm.

Broillet said the lawsuit was filed because “the game was played under those conditions. . . . The footing in general was a problem.”

Prosecutors argued that Lyons’ crushed fifth vertebra was the result of an “improper technique on a tackle,” according to Katherine B. Pene, one of the attorneys who defended the school district.

“This was an unfortunate accident,” Pene said. The risk “was inherent in the sport of football.”

Football players are carefully instructed on the proper way to make a tackle and are told not to hit an opponent headfirst as Lyons did, according to testimony given during the two-week trial.

Even though it has canceled several football games over the years due to inclement weather, the school district did nothing wrong, Pene said, by allowing the Chatsworth-Fairfax game to take place.

“Football is a game traditionally played in all kinds of weather, on all kinds of fields,” she said.

Broillet said wet conditions on the playing field contributed to Lyons’ accident because the poor footing put him in a bad position when he made the tackle. “Body control is very important in avoiding injury,” he said.

Lyons originally sued several government agencies and the manufacturers of the football helmet he used. With the exception of the school district, all defendants had been dismissed from the case. Broillet said he was not aware of any out-of-court settlements.