A former South Carolina high school basketball player was awarded $5.87 million in a lawsuit against his school over two concussions he suffered while playing, according to The Post and Courier in Charleston.
Brett Baker-Goins was playing basketball for First Baptist School of Charleston in 2013 when he injured his head.
After complaining of headaches, dizziness and cognitive issues, he was treated at Medical University Hospital, his attorneys said.
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Baker-Goins was diagnosed with a sports-related concussion.
When he returned to school, the teenager was put through the South Carolina Independent School Association’s “return to play” protocol.
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But Baker-Goins’ attorneys argued that First Baptist School rushed him through the process, and he suffered another concussion five weeks later.
“The second concussion resulted in a permanent traumatic brain injury that has delayed Brett’s educational, social and emotional development,” the attorneys said.
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Baker-Goins sued the school, and the jury reached its verdict in his favor on Friday.
“This was a five-year battle that ended with the truth,” he said in a statement.
Baker-Goins’ lead attorney, W. Mullins McLeod Jr., said his client’s injuries were preventable.
“Safety is not an accident,” McLeod said via The Times and Democrat of Orangeburg, South Carolina. “Injuries like Brett’s don’t happen if the return to play protocol rules are as important as the playbook.”
Representatives of First Baptist have yet to comment on the $5.87 million judgment.
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Baker-Goins’ successful lawsuit could inspire other injured athletes to go to court.
Cam Smith of USA Today wrote that “the landmark ruling that should now help set up the basketball player’s future … and perhaps pave the way for other former athletes who suffered traumatic brain injuries in prior eras to file lawsuits to gain restitution.
Yahoo Sports‘ Jay Busbee agreed.
“Regardless of the ultimate resolution of this case, it could open the door for other high school athletes to challenge their states’ concussion protocols,” he wrote.
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