Family of River Bluff football player who died after collapsing on football field agrees to settlement

LEXINGTON, S.C. (WIS) - A lawsuit against Lexington County School District One filed in 2018 after a 14-year-old River Bluff High School student died after collapsing on a football field has been settled.

The lawsuit, filed by Willie and Shonda Simpkins who represent the estate of Lewis N. Simpkins, was fully settled using alternate dispute resolution.

The lawsuit was filed two years after Lewis’s death. According to the document, Lewis collapsed on the field during practice in August 2016 while doing “up-downs” after practicing in full pads and running gassers at River Bluff High. During the “up-downs,” Lewis struggled to get up and could barely lift his feet while chopping them. After several “up-downs,” Lewis went down to a knee and could not get back up. According to the lawsuit, he did one more before rolling over and gasping for air.

The suit says Lewis continued to struggle to breathe and he began cramping up as was taken into the training room. The suit went on to say Lewis was able to answer a few questions initially, but he continued to struggle with breathing. Shortly after, his head dropped and he became unresponsive.

A settlement amount was not listed in the court documents received by WIS.