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Mitigating the Incidence and Severity of Injuries and Other Harms

Jeffrey Bowen, et al. v. Telfair County School District, et al.

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Overview

Jeffrey Bowen, et al. v. Telfair County School District, et al. (S.D. Ga. Sept. 17, 2019): A high school football player sued the Telfair County School District and football coach, among others. After the player sustained prolonged cognitive injuries in a game, the coach allowed him to return to play despite the player exhibiting symptoms of a concussion. A federal judge found that the school district was entitled to sovereign immunity on state tort claims. While the court concluded that the football coach was entitled to qualified immunity related to claims brought via 42 U.S.C. § 1983 and official immunity on state intentional tort claims, it found no immunity for a “negligence claim based on his failure to follow concussion treatment and prevention procedures.” Read the decision here.

View all cases in the Judicial Trends in Public Health – November 15, 2019.

View all cases under “Mitigating the Incidence & Severity of Injuries & Other Harms.”