Let’s take a detour from the Steelers‘ QB concerns and talk about the star QB who just played three seasons in the NFL, but left a legacy almost three years ago. Yes, we’re talking about Dwayne Haskins, who tragically passed away on 9 April 2022. The news of his demise didn’t just hit Buckeyes, Commanders (then Redskins), and Steelers fans—it sent shockwaves through the entire NFL world.

If you don’t know much about Haskins, don’t worry. His family is working on a documentary project to narrate Haskins’s life. However, according to reports, the late QB’s family—his father, Dwayne Haskins Sr.; his mother, Tamara Haskins; and his sister, Tamia Haskins—fears that his widow, Kalabrya Haskins, may try to interfere with its release. As a result, the family has filed a lawsuit against Kalabrya. Recent reports indicate a lengthy resolution to the dispute is unlikely.

However, in January, a federal judge dismissed the lawsuit filed by Haskins’ family. The U.S. District Judge William S. Stickman IV considered that even though the family insists that Kalabrya is involved in, “Constant Harassment” over the family’s use of her late husband’s name, image, and likeness, and other aspects of his identity on social media, the lawsuit doesn’t meet the legal requirements on valid grounds.

Simply put, the court sees the lawsuit as unfit for legal action. The reason behind it? The court believes that the conflict hasn’t reached a point ready for proper judgment. According to Stickman who stated that “Article III, Section 2 of the U.S. Constitution limits federal courts’ jurisdiction to actual cases and controversies.” That means the court won’t intervene if the lawsuit is simply based on something speculative or premature.

Haskins’s family initially filed the lawsuit in July 2024, alleging that Kalabrya is constantly harassing them over their using Haskins’s name, image, and likeness on social media.

According to sports law reporter Jason Morrin, Kalabrya actively opposed the creation of the Haskins Family Foundation Inc. Additionally, she allegedly took down their Instagram accounts, including those of Haskins’s dad and sister. Now, it’s safe to say that the family’s documentary project will probably face delays until they resolve the dispute.

Either way, the court has closed the wrongful death case for Dwayne Haskins

In April 2024, Dwayne Haskins was driving a rental truck when it ran out of gas. While attempting to cross I-595 near Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on foot, a dump truck tragically struck him, resulting in his death at the scene. The late QB was in Florida to train with his Steelers’ teammates.

If the reports are accurate, the family partially settled with the truck driver, its owner, and its broker after his tragic death. However, back in August 2023, Haskins’s estate filed a wrongful death complaint. As per the complaint, the dump truck driver was driving recklessly. Besides, Haskins’s estate alleged that a group of individuals drugged and robbed the late Steelers’ QB.

The lawsuit claimed that the group included one man and three women who drugged and robbed Haskins. Meanwhile, the estate also sued the car company for allowing Haskins to use a faulty vehicle.

However, a year later, in December 2024, the State of Florida dismissed the wrongful death case for Haskins. The NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport wrote on ‘X, “A significant development: Per Rick Ellsley, attorney for Kalabrya Haskins, as personal representative of the estate of Dwayne Haskins, Jr. a dismissal has been filed in the Florida wrongful death case.” As per the post, Rick Ellsley (an attorney representing Kalabrya Haskins) released a statement: “Each of the various defendants has paid their respective settlements. So the wrongful death case in Florida is now closed.” However, the situation remains unresolved.

While the wrongful death case has ended, the legal battle between Haskins’s family and Kalabrya is far from over. With the dispute stalling the documentary project, its release remains unclear.