DeSanto Rollins lawsuit against Lane Kiffin and Ole Miss dismissed
The lawsuit filed by DeSanto Rollins against Ole Miss football head coach Lane Kiffin and the University of Mississippi last September reached a conclusion on Wednesday.
A United States Judge of the Northern District of Mississippi dismissed Rollins’ suit, ending the months-long legal battle between the Ole Miss football player and Kiffin.
Rollins’ suit claimed he was suffering from mental health issues just prior to the 2022 football season and was not given proper care for those issues by the university and that Kiffin allegedly kicked Rollins off the team causing those issues to cause more anxiety.
“The plaintiff’s (Rollins) response made no attempt to counter the defendants’ argument and provided only a formulaic recitation of the elements of an IIED (intentional infliction of emotional distress) claim,” the document filed on Wednesday reads. “For example, the plaintiff stated that Kiffin’s actions evoke outrage and revulsion in civilized society but provided no explanation and cited no case to support assertion.”
In the lawsuit Rollins was seeking to be re-instated to the football team, but he continues to be on the team roster and was never officially kicked off, according to Ole Miss. He was also seeking punitive damages of $40 million from Kiffin and the other defendants listed in the lawsuit.
A meeting between the two in March 2022 is heavily cited in Rollins’ suit and that Kiffin “kicked” the defensive lineman off the team because he requested a mental health break after their initial meeting a month prior.
A recording of the conversation was released as well as transcriptions of the conversation was included in the initial lawsuit.
“Although Kiffin’s conduct in the meetings was certainly offensive and imprudent, it is more akin to immature insults and indignities than to behavior going beyond all possible decency,” the document read. “The plaintiff’s intentional infliction of emotional distress claim is, therefore, dismissed with prejudice.”
Rollins’ ADA and state law negligence claims were dismissed without prejudice and the remaining claims were dismissed with prejudice, according to the court document.
