SmashMouth

LeCharles Bentley 2nd ex-Brown to sue for staph infection - ESPN


CLEVELAND -- Former Cleveland Browns center LeCharles Bentley sued the team on Thursday over a career-ending staph infection he says he contracted at the team's training facility.
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Bentley's attorney, Shannon Polk, said the lawsuit filed in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court seeks at least $25,000 in damages for alleged fraud and negligent misrepresentation. Bentley could seek more money in court.

Polk said Bentley nearly died from the infection while he was rehabbing from a knee injury. She said the Browns persuaded Bentley to rehab at the team's facility and never told him about "a host of unsanitary conditions" or other players who had contracted staph there.

The Browns did not immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday.

Former Browns receiver Joe Jurevicius settled a similar lawsuit in June. Terms weren't disclosed.

The Bentley lawsuit said the Browns' training facility in suburban Berea has been portrayed to players and player prospects "as a world-class facility at which 'state-of-the-art' physical training, medical care and treatment and other rehabilitative services are provided."

But the lawsuit said Bentley's repaired knee became swollen and he was diagnosed with staph infection within weeks of beginning rehabilitation at the facility on July 31, 2006.

The result, the lawsuit said, was multiple surgeries to root out Bentley's staph infection "and he nearly lost his life."

The lawsuit said Bentley developed staph because he relied on the team's representations about a hygienic training facility and because the Browns failed to sanitize equipment.

When the Jurevicius lawsuit was settled, team attorney Fred Nance said the Browns' sanitation and hygiene practices "have been and continue to be at the highest state-of-the-art level in the league."



Hard to see a player get affected like that. Best of luck!

saintfan

Knew this was coming...

QBREES9

Bad medical staff over there.

lynwood

Didn't know the staff was giving out infections. :P

papz

He signed a 36 million dollar contract and he's suing for 25k? The legal fees alone will exceed that. This is a joke right?

SmashMouth

Yeah.. I noticed that too ... must be poor research or poor journalism ... or maybe there was a Vuvuzela blowing at the time thereby distracting the writer!

ScottF

we'll never know this guy's deal, or how good he could have been
He bolted out of here badmouthing everyone, now he is pointing fingers at the med staff in Cleveland

spkb25

Let me say this Mr. Bentley, I bet you wish you had stayed in NOLA, huh?

OldMaid

I am glad Benelty did not stay here. He sounds like trouble to me.
Staph infections are two kinds: Serious Listed In Critical Condition and Serious Deadly.
It is good the guy is better and is alive. I am sure he was close to death. I think, hope, Browns med staff., and equipment staff are at the highest level.
These things happen in pro sports. They can get staph infections on the field.
It is a dangerous game. That is why they get paid as they do.
I doubt if he wins a lawsuit.

Rugby Saint II

That is so right.