A lawsuit was filed on Friday, June 26, on behalf of Matthew Osborne, better known by his WWE alter ego Doink the Clown. Osborne passed away on June 28, 2013 after accidentally overdosing on morphine and hydrocodone. The lawsuit was filed in federal court in Dallas, Texas, alleging that Osborne sustained traumatic head injuries while in the WWE that resulted in depression and drug use, and ultimately lead to his death.
More specifically, the lawsuit alleges the following:
WWE took inadequate steps to correct the problem or to address its injurious conduct, the consequences of which are still coming to light. Indeed, WWE continues a course of conduct designed to mislead its wrestlers, and designed to mislead Matthew Osborne until his death, about the injuries they sustained while wrestling for WWE by failing to disclose pertinent facts or offering misleading truths.
The WWE sees the situation differently. WWE lawyer Jerry McDevitt claims that plaintiffs’ attorneys are to blame:
They’re all different from the NFL. We never had anyone claim they had these kinds of injuries until [these attorneys] did it. They find the destitute, people who have no money, and told them there’s money to be made. That’s what is going on. And I feel bad for these families, because they think they’ll make money off of this, and they’re not.