Key Takeaways
- Deion Sanders has been subpoenaed to testify in son Shilo Sanders’ Aug. 31 bankruptcy trial over an $11.89 million judgment, a date that conflicts with Colorado’s season opener prep.
- The case stems from a 2015 altercation with ex–school security guard John Darjean, who says Shilo’s punch and elbow caused a “willful and malicious” injury, while Shilo maintains he acted in self-defense.
- Darjean’s lawyers want Deion questioned about his conversation with Darjean and family tensions around Shilo’s phone, as the court decides if the multimillion-dollar debt can be wiped in Chapter 7 amid Shilo’s broader money and NIL disputes.
Deion Sanders has been pulled directly into Shilo Sanders’ $11.89 million bankruptcy fight, with the Colorado football coach subpoenaed to testify at his son’s upcoming trial in Denver.
According to USA Today, Shilo Sanders’ trial is scheduled to begin Aug. 31 and could run through Sept. 4. Colorado opens its football season at Georgia Tech on Sept. 3, meaning Deion could be called into court during the same week he’s preparing the Buffaloes for their first game of the year.
Judge Michael E. Romero acknowledged the conflict during an Aug. 14 pretrial conference.
“I noticed Deion was subpoenaed,” Romero said. He later added, “I’m also concerned there’s a game: CU’s first game is that same week.” An attorney for Sanders has since accepted service of the subpoena on his behalf, according to USA Today.
Deion did not witness the 2015 incident at the center of the bankruptcy case, but attorneys for John Darjean, the former Dallas school security guard who is owed the judgment, believe his testimony could still matter.
Darjean has said he was attempting to confiscate then-15-year-old Shilo’s phone at Deion’s direction when the confrontation occurred. According to Darjean, Shilo punched him and struck him around the neck area with an elbow, worsening an existing spinal injury. Shilo has maintained that he acted in self-defense.
Romero noted that Deion allegedly spoke with Darjean shortly before the altercation. “That conversation may be relevant,” the judge said.
Darjean’s attorney, Ori Raphael, also indicated that Deion could be questioned about family circumstances leading up to the incident. Shilo’s legal team is expected to argue that he feared losing access to his phone because it could have prevented him from communicating with his mother, Pilar Sanders, amid tensions between his parents.
“It connects the dots completely,” Raphael said of Deion’s potential testimony.
The August 31 trial will determine whether Shilo Sanders can discharge the $11.89 million judgment through Chapter 7 bankruptcy. Darjean argues the debt resulted from a “willful and malicious injury,” which could prevent it from being erased under bankruptcy law. Shilo says the incident was self-defense.
Darjean originally sued Shilo and his parents in 2016. Deion and Pilar were later dismissed from the case, leaving Shilo as the sole defendant. Shilo dropped his attorneys in 2020 and failed to appear when the case finally went to trial in Texas in 2022. After hearing Darjean’s evidence without a defense presentation, the court entered the $11.89 million default judgment.
Shilo filed for bankruptcy in 2023 after Darjean attempted to collect.
