Miami Dolphins News: Jim Turner Files Defamation Lawsuit Against Ted Wells

According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, former Miami Dolphins offensive line coach Jim Turner has filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida against independent investigator Ted Wells and his law firm, Paul Weiss of New York, seeking damages for defamation.

Turner, as well as former trainer Kevin O’Neill, was fired by the team in February 2014 after the release of Wells report. The investigation focused on the infamous Bullygate locker room scandal, which involved ex-Dolphins offensive linemen Jonathan Martin and Richie Incognito.

During a radio interview with SiriusXM Mad Dog Sports Radio back in May 2015, Turner did not hold back his displeasure with Wells and condemned the entire investigation.

“Wells is not a good human being,” said Turner. “When I did not give him the story he wanted, he targeted me as a part of a problem in Miami. He’s not an independent investigator. He’s not looking at both sides of the situation.”

Claiming that his reputation and career have been unfairly affected, Turner believes that Wells’ 144-page report on team conduct in the Dolphins’ locker room permanently hindered his chances of being hired by another NFL team.

According to Schefter, Turner alleges in his lawsuit that Wells and his law firm were hired by the NFL to put together a report that would “placate the public and assign blame to certain individuals, such as Turner, while the law firm was well-paid and well-positioned for future work on NFL cases such as the one that turned out to be Deflategate.”

Turner’s attorney, Peter Ginsberg, strongly believes that Wells and Weiss failed to include significant testimony from former and current Dolphins coaches and players in Wells’ Bullygate report. Instead, Turner is suing because he claims the report blames him for the incidents.