New Plaintiffs Join Iowa Athletes’ Civil Lawsuit, Bringing Total to 37
Date: 2024-09-11 Author: Leon Pierce Categories: SPORTS BETTING
Last week, 10 Iowa and Iowa State athletes and a basketball equipment manager were added to the civil lawsuit filed against the State of Iowa. They include ISU football players Terry Roberts and Jeremiah “Trey” Mathis III, and ISU wrestlers Samuel Schuyler, Carter Schmidt, Nathan Schoen, Drew Woodley, and Paniro Johnson. From the University of Iowa, wrestlers Brennan Swofford and Corey Cabanban, ISU track and field athlete Cameron “Cam” Jones, and basketball equipment manager Evan Schuster are also joining the case.
The 11 new plaintiffs were given permission by a federal judge to join the case and sue the state for monetary damages. They claim their rights were violated by government security and criminal investigations and that their names were defamed.
'Strength in Unity': 37 Plaintiffs and New Attorneys
Since the lawsuit was initially filed in April, the total number of plaintiffs has increased from 26 to 37, including both current and former University of Iowa and ISU athletes. The new plaintiffs are represented by attorneys Grant Gerleman, James Roberts of Texas, and Chris Sandy of Iowa. They will work alongside Des Moines attorneys Van Plumb and Matthew Boles, who previously filed the lawsuit.
Plumb, an attorney for the case, said of the increase in the number of plaintiffs, "the more we have, the stronger our position is." He and Boles are excited to work with the new attorneys to strengthen the plaintiffs' case.
Violation of Fourth and Fourteenth Amendment Rights
The civil lawsuit alleges that investigators misconducted, which plaintiffs’ attorneys argue violated the athletes’ rights under the Fourth and Fourteenth Amendments of the U.S. Constitution. These amendments provide protection against unreasonable searches and seizures. The plaintiffs also allege that investigators were not properly trained to use GeoComply’s Kibana software, which was used to track the bets.
As a result of these actions, the athletes suffered humiliation, pain, and suffering, and their reputations were seriously damaged. The investigation involved athletes betting on NCAA events, which is prohibited for participants.
The investigation resulted in the athletes losing their NCAA athletic qualifications and criminal charges against several athletes. Most of the defendants pleaded guilty to underage betting, paid fines, and the identity theft charges were dropped. However, ISU wrestler Paniro Johnson and soccer players Isaiah Lee, Jirel Brock and Enii Uwazurike refused to plea bargain. All charges against them were dropped in March after the Criminal Investigation Department was found to have improperly used software to track bets at ISU sports properties.
