Colorado coach Deion Sanders has indeed been subpoenaed to testify at his son Shilo’s bankruptcy trial, which starts on August 31. Coach Prime’s legal team is trying to keep him from having to appear.
Via Brent Schrotenboer of USA Today, Sanders’s lawyers have filed a motion to quash the legal obligation to testify.
“Mr. Sanders is the head coach for the University of Colorado football organization,” the motion, filed by go-to Denver-area (and beyond) sports lawyer Harvey Steinberg, argues. “The CU Buffaloes’ first game of the season is set to occur on September 3, 2026 in Atlanta, Georgia. Thus, Mr. Sanders’ job obligations require him to continue working with the University, staff, and players to both prepare the team for its September 3 game and to travel with the team to Georgia.
“Common sense dictates that Mr. Sanders’ absence from sitting outside the courtroom to await potential testimony will cause him significant and undue personal and professional burdens, and that such a requirement will also significantly impact the CU Buffaloes’ preparation for their season opener.”
Steinberg also wants the court to find that official service of the subpoena did not occur, even though he agreed to accept it on Sanders’s behalf. Steinberg claims that the opposing lawyer reneged on the supposed terms of the acceptance of the subpoena. The lawyer who served it claims that they agreed to testimony by video link with 24 hours’ advance notice.
The case focuses on an effort by the plaintiff, John Darjean, to keep an $11.89 million judgment against Shilo from being discharged through the federal bankruptcy process. Darjean, a security guard at Shilo’s school in 2015, suffered injuries in a dispute with Shilo arising from an effort to confiscate his phone.
There’s a separate question as to whether Deion’s testimony has any relevance to the case. Apparently, that question hinges on whether Shilo’s lawyers open the door to Deion’s testimony becoming relevant by referring to reasons why Shilo may have been concerned about losing access to his phone.
The ultimate question to be decided in the case is whether the injuries suffered by Darjean were “willful and malicious.” If so, the debt survives. If not, the debt will be discharged.
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