A group of retired NFL players and their spouses have traveled to Washington on Wednesday and petitioned the Justice Department to probe the use of race-norming in the league's landmark $1 billion class-action concussion settlement — a practice that may have negatively impacted hundreds, or even thousands, of black former players.
In June, the league pledged to evaluate concussion claims without the use of race-norming, which presumes African-American players start with lower cognitive functioning, making it harder for them to prove neurological decline and qualify for settlements.
But despite the NFL's reversal, the impact of race-norming in concussion settlement is not fully understood, and players are accusing the league of using the practice as a strategy to limit payouts.
'The owners obviously did this to save money,' Charles Mann, a 60-year-old former 49ers and Redskins defensive end, told The Washington Post while petitioning the Justice Department on Wednesday. 'We need fresh blood, new people to come in here and take a look at this.'
A Justice Department spokesperson told the Post that the petition would be reviewed, but declined to say anything more. There is no precedent for the Justice Department investigating a federal lawsuit settlement, according to the Post.
There is no current mediation timeline in the dispute, but more than 1,000 players have submitted dementia-related claims only to be denied, according to court records obtained by the Post.
Former Washington and San Francisco defensive end Charles Mann, 60, was among the players who petitioned the Justice Department on Wednesday, according to the Post. Mann said he feels find cognitively, but recently had a baseline test to see if there was any reason for concern. 'Now I'm just left wondering,' Mann told the Post, 'did they race-norm me?'
A Justice Department spokesperson told the Post that the petition would be reviewed, but declined to say anything more. There is no precedent for the Justice Department investigating a federal lawsuit settlement, according to the Post
The issue first arose a year ago when former Pittsburgh Steelers players Kevin Henry and Najeh Davenport filed a lawsuit alleging race-norming practices in the concussion settlement payouts. Both players claimed that they were denied benefits based on those race-norming practices.
Senior US District Judge Anita B. Brody dismissed the suit in March on procedural grounds. But with calls for racial justice intensifying in the US, and as she marks 10 years overseeing the NFL concussion case, the 86-year-old judge has issued two later orders suggesting the practice troubles her.
First, she ordered the NFL and the lead players lawyer to mediate the race-norming issue - with help from a diverse panel of medical experts. Then in June, she seated the
