Deion Sanders Bails Out on His Son For Colorado Football
from Kamran Ahmad, with Essentially College Football
Deion is the only coach who has to worry about being held in contempt of court if he focuses on staying within campus and doing his actual job. His kid’s problems have dragged the Colorado legal system to stand in between the Buffaloes and their head coach.
A bankruptcy case involving his son, Shilo, is heading toward trial in Denver at almost the worst possible time for Deion. Colorado opens its season against Georgia Tech on September 3, and the trial is scheduled to begin just three days earlier. Deion has received a subpoena to be present. But that is where Sanders’ lawyers are drawing the line.
“Mr. Sanders is the head coach for the University of Colorado football organization,” Sanders’ attorney, Harvey Steinberg, states in the motion to quash Deion Sanders’ subpoena, as reported by USA Today. “The CU Buffaloes’ first game of the season is set to occur on September 3, 2026, in Atlanta, Georgia. Thus, Mr. Sanders’ job obligations require him to continue working with the University, staff, and players.”
The timing is the biggest issue. Colorado is not playing a Saturday opener. The Buffaloes are scheduled to play Georgia Tech on Thursday, September 3, meaning the team will already be deep into game-week preparation when the trial starts. Colorado is expected to travel to Atlanta on September 1. For a head coach, that’s not exactly a week where disappearing for hours will be ideal.
“Common sense dictates that Mr. Sanders’ absence from sitting outside the courtroom to await potential testimony will cause him significant and undue personal and professional burdens,” the motion states, as reported by USA Today. “That such a requirement will also significantly impact the CU Buffaloes’ preparation for their season opener.”
Deion’s lawyers are now pushing for a much narrower arrangement. If the court decides he actually needs to testify, they want the appearance handled remotely or scheduled around Colorado’s preparations rather than forcing Sanders to sit at the courthouse waiting to be called. There is also a question over whether Deion was properly served with the subpoena.
How to Bypass a Subpoena
Under normal circumstances, if you flatly ignore or refuse a validly served subpoena without a legal challenge, you can be held in contempt of court, which carries severe consequences including fines and even potential jail tim
But a subpoena is only binding if it is legally served. Boulder County deputies tried to serve Sanders during an open practice on August 11, but he was marked “unavailable”.
While the plaintiff’s attorney claimed service was later accepted via email, Steinberg actively disputed this in court, arguing that official service never actually occurred.
Furthermore, it is also being argued that the lawyer who actually served the subpoena claimed that there was an agreement for Deion to give his testimony by video link with 24 hours’ advance notice.
There is also the aspect of relevance. In order to compel someone’s testimony, the information must be relevant. Steinberg has argued that since Judge Michael Romero restricted the trial’s scope strictly to the day of the 2015 incident, Deion Sanders possesses zero relevant or admissible information regarding what happened.
The opposing side has a different account of what happened. In fact, the underlying case goes back much further. Shilo was involved in a 2015 altercation with John Darjean, who was working as a security guard at Triple A Academy in Dallas.
The whole Shilo Sanders legal dispute goes back more than 10 years
Shilo was 15 when the incident with John Darjean happened in 2015. Darjean sued him the following year, and the case dragged on for years before ending with an $11.89 million default judgment in 2022 after Shilo did not appear for the trial.
A year later, Shilo filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy. Most of the more than $11 million he listed as debt came from that judgment. Now the fight is over whether bankruptcy can erase it. Darjean says it should not, arguing the debt came from a willful and malicious injury. Shilo has maintained that he acted in self-defense.
That comes down to what the court believes happened in 2015. Darjean’s side argues that Shilo’s actions amounted to a willful and malicious injury, which could keep the $11.89 million debt from being wiped out in bankruptcy. Deion Sanders, though, is not accused of taking part in the confrontation.
His relevance comes from his relationship to the events surrounding it and his interactions with the people involved. That’s why Darjean’s lawyers want to question him. Still, Deion’s attorney is arguing that his testimony may not justify the disruption being demanded. There is one more thing hanging over the case.
The judge has said the trial will stay focused on what happened during the 2015 incident, rather than turning into a wider examination of the Sanders family. That could make some of the questions Darjean’s lawyers want to ask Deion less useful.
Still, Deion may have something to offer. He reportedly spoke with Darjean shortly before the confrontation, which is one reason the judge has indicated that conversation could be relevant. Deion was not at the scene when the altercation happened, so his testimony would not be about watching the incident unfold.
The timing is the real headache. The trial is set to start August 31, while Colorado plays Georgia Tech on September 3. Deion’s lawyers are now trying to keep him from having to sit around court during game week. If the judge decides he needs to testify, the sides could still work out a limited appearance or another way to get his testimony into the case.
For now, that has not been settled. Deion’s request to quash the subpoena is headed for a hearing on August 27, just four days before the trial opens.