The family of a 16-year-old South East High School football player who died after a game-related brain injury has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the Los Angeles Unified School District. Christopher Garcia, a junior varsity player, was injured in 2024 after making a defensive tackle and striking his head on the field.
Video released by the family’s attorneys shows Garcia tackling a receiver before collapsing. He was later placed in a medically induced coma and died 11 days later. The lawsuit says LAUSD failed to provide safe facilities, proper equipment and adequate supervision, and that those failures led to his death.
Garcia’s sister, Kimberly Garcia, said at a news conference that the family wants justice and that it was unfair for her brother to die because of what she described as district negligence. She also said it took five or six days for coaches and the principal to visit the hospital after the incident. The family says an ambulance should have been at the scene, but was not.
LAUSD has said it has a rule that games cannot be played without qualified medical personnel. The district also said two medical staff members were present and that immediate medical care was provided. In a statement to ABC7, LAUSD said it does not comment on pending or ongoing litigation.
