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The lawsuit WWE Hall of Famer Jerry Lawler brought against against Hardeman County, TN in 2019 over the death of his son Brian Christopher Lawler aka former WWE star Grandmaster Sexay was dismissed on 9/4, PWInsider.com has learned.
Lawler's lawsuit alleged that “numerous failures of the county and its employees" led to the death of former WWE star Brian “Christopher” Lawler aka Grandmaster Sexay. The lawsuit sought $3 million in damages, plus additional compensatory damages if the court sees fit to award them. He was also seeking a court order forcing Hardeman County to force immediate changes to prevent any additional suicides of prisoners in Hardeman County custody, noting, " the order should require "Hardeman County to correct their unconstitutional deficiencies so that no other family has to go through what this family has had to endure over the past year."
The 9/4 decision from The U.S. District Court, Western District of Tennessee (Jackson) noted, "In looking at whether Hardeman County could be held liable for its employees’ violations of Decedent’s rights, in its previous order this Court restated the well-established principle that local government units such as counties are liable for violations of constitutional rights by their employees only when a policy, practice, or custom of the county causes a constitutional violation. This Court also reiterated that a plaintiff may show that a municipality caused a constitutional violation in one of four ways: the existence of an illegal official policy or legislative enactment, that an official with final decision-making authority ratified illegal actions, the existence of a policy of inadequate training, or the existence of a custom of tolerance or acquiescence of federal rights violations. had previously dismissed some of the lawsuit with the Defendants asking the court to reconsider the portions it was allowing to move forward. The court sent that reconsideration to an appellate court to determine whether the remaining issues should be dismissed."
Brian Lawler was taken off life support on 7/29/18 at the age of 46, one day after he was found hanging in his cell in Bolivar, TN, where he had been incarcerated after a DUI arrest several weeks prior. According to the 9/4 ruling:
The appellate court found that "Plaintiff had failed to present evidence from which a jury could find that the individual officers knew that the Decedent possessed a “strong likelihood” of suicide, and disregarded that knowledge; therefore, Plaintiff could not show that the individual defendants were subjectively aware of such a risk."
Another part of the reason for the reversal is that the original court ruling that allowed some aspects of the lawsuit to continue on was based on a 2021 precedent. Since Lawler's passing was 2018, it was ruled an earlier precedent should have been applied to the case. With the appellate court making those rulings, the determination was made that the entirety of the lawsuit was to be dismissed since the earlier precedent laid in favor of the defendants.
Jerry Lawler's lawsuit alleged the Hardeman County Sheriff’s Office “failed to provide Brian with any treatment for his drug and alcohol issues” during Lawler’s incarceration and “altogether failed to provide him with appropriate care after he was assaulted by another inmate” the day of Lawler’s death. In the lawsuit, Jerry Lawler stated that the only reason he did not bail his son out was that he explained to Hardeman County Sheriff John Doolen that Brian needed help for addiction issues and was “promised” Brian would get the proper treatment for his personal issues. Instead, Brian was never provided with any sort of treatment while incarcerated. Jerry Lawler stated in the lawsuit that he felt betrayed by Doolen over that broken promise. Doolen was initially sued as well but dropped over the course of the long legal process that has gone on over the last few years.
Lawler also claimed negligence on behalf of the correction officers who were supposed to be supervising Brian Lawler. He is alleging that one officer saw Brian in the corner of his cell with a towel over his head, but instead of checking on the former WWE star, the officer ignored him, choosing to take garbage out instead. When the officer returned, he saw Christopher in the same position and, with a co-worker, finally checked on him. At that point, they became aware Christopher hung himself but even their attempts to rescue him were ill-prepared, as they used a pair of children’s scissors to attempt to cut him free.
Lawler alleged in the lawsuit that if the Hardeman County Sheriff’s office had been better prepared and had their staff immediately acted upon seeing Brian sitting in the corner with the towel over his face, Brian’s life may have been saved.
The Lawler family has long disputed the idea that Brian’s death was self-inflicted. During an interview with WMC-TV several months ago, Jerry Lawler explained that while his family was told that Brian hung himself with his shoelaces, photos taken of Brian at the hospital show marks on the sides of his neck but not the front of his throat. Lawler explained that the area that did not feature any marks that would be equal to the size of his son’s hand, which lead Lawler to believe Brian was trying to use his hand to try and “keep the pressure” off his throat.
"We've received literally countless calls, text messages from people, actual eyewitnesses, that were in the jail and saw things that happened on the actual day that Brian died that now has opened up a new can of worms," Lawler told WMC-TV in January 2019. "It just doesn't seem like it was suicide."
Lawler said the same day his son allegedly took his life, they had spoken at 11 AM that morning and that his son, “talked perfectly normal, perfectly rational." Later, Lawler's fiancee received a 2 PM phone call, informing them Brian had been in a fight with another inmate, even though he was supposed to have been kept away from other prisoners.
Lawler stated that his son had requested medical attention as he was bleeding from the head but “apparently” did not receive it and several hours later, was found dead in his cell. Lawler stated that the Sheriff had previously given him personal assurances that Brian would be OK while incarcerated. Lawler also alleged that twenty security cameras in the County Jail were not operating the day Brian died.
Lawler’s lawsuit alleges that Hardeman County officials declined Brian Lawler’s requests to be taken to a hospital to be treated for a wound over his eye and ignored his concerns that he may have suffered a concussion. Instead, he was put into solitary confinement, where he was later found hanging. The lawsuit also alleged that Brian was never evaluated for suicide risk and that the cell he was placed in featured “Large bolts protruding from the cell [that] could be used as an anchor for the shoe laces used in the hanging”
During a press conference back when the lawsuit was initially filed, Lawler’s attorney Jeffrey Rosenblum stated that was no reason bolts should ever be protruding in a solitary confinement cell and that there was no reason to let inmates enter cells with shoelaces they could use to hang from. Rosenblum also stated that Brian Lawler had been diagnosed with a major depressive disorder and was on a number of medications for chronic pain and anxiety at the time of his death, adding to concern over the fact he was never properly evaluated before being placed in solitary.
While the official, announced cause of Brian Lawler's death is suicide by hanging, Jerry Lawler commented previously that “doesn't pass the smell test” and promised in 2018 that he was not going to stop pursuing the issue until he had answers. Lawler also stated that Brian's fellow inmates have told him they don't think his death was suicide.
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation opened an investigation into the death of Brian Lawler the same day he passed away. The TBI concluded their investigation in April 2019. "Our investigation has concluded and all findings have been turned over to District Attorney General Mark Davidson. I will have to refer any questions to his office," TBI's Keli McAlister told PWInsider.com at the time.
In January 2019, attorneys representing Jerry Lawler and the estate of his son Brian Lawler filed subpoenas months before the investigation ended, demanding the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and The Hardeman County Sheriff's Office provide them with information on the then-ongoing investigation into Brian's passing. “We were tired of waiting. This family has waited for over six months for the Hardeman County Sheriff Department to provide them with detailed explanation and the documentation as to what happened to their son and we decided to take the into our own hands,” Attorney Jeff Rosenblum told Memphis ABC affiliate channel 24 at the time.
Brian Lawler was arrested for DUI in front of his home after having been pursued by police on 7/6/18. According to a TMZ report at the time, authorities observed Christopher speeding and swerving around 1 AM. They attempted to pull him over, but Lawler failed to stop. He finally stopped and according to the police report, Christopher "reeked of booze" and had an open 12 ounce can in his car's center console. Lawler remained incarcerated until his passing on 7/29/19.
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