A Gulf Breeze mother is seeking damages of more than $1 million after her son suffered a brain injury during a 2009 Gulf Breeze Sports Associationsanctioned football game in Pensacola.

Katina Giardina, the mother of injury victim Dylan Cannon, filed a lawsuit last month in Santa Rosa County against the GBSA and Texas-based helmet manufacturer Riddell. The suit, which is one side of a legal argument, alleges that a helmet worn by her son was defective and GBSA did not ensure the equipment was reasonably safe, contributing to the injury.

Cannon was a 14-year-old eighth grader when, on Sept. 12, 2009, he was a member of the GBSA Juniors football team playing against Northeast Pensacola at the Roger Scott Complex in Pensacola. During a kickoff return play, Cannon was hit full-speed by a Northeast Pensacola player just as the play was whistled dead.

“I thought he had broken his neck,” Giardina said in a previous story published by Gulf Breeze News. “I didn’t think he was going to get up.”

Cannon climbed to his feet and left the field under his own power. His head began to ache severely, however, and he removed his helmet and shoulder pads and laid down on the sideline.

“Everything got blurry,” he told the News. “My headache was 100 times worse than any headache I’ve ever had.”

Coaches and parents realized Cannon was hurt and called for an ambulance. The youngster was transported to nearby Sacred Heart Hospital where he promptly underwent surgery.

Doctors discovered that Cannon’s brain had shifted a quarter-inch to the left, causing it to hit the side of his skull and begin bleeding. Surgeons removed a section of Cannon’s skull to relieve the pressure of the brain’s swelling, and tubes were inserted to drain blood from the boy’s skull.

Cannon spent several nights in the hospital and recovered for an additional six weeks at home. The lawsuit alleges that the boy suffered pain, disability, physical impairment, mental anguish, loss of earning capacity and loss of capacity for the enjoyment of life in additional to incurring substantial medical expenses as a result of his injuries, which potentially could affect him the rest of his life.

The suit contends that the lining of the interior of the boy’s GBSA-issued helmet would not inflate, as it was designed to do, and the lack of inflation caused or contributed to the head trauma and brain injury.

It further argues that the helmet did not provide sufficient protection and support to the back of the head, where the blow in this incident occurred. Additionally, it contends the helmet’s design and manufacturing provided for insufficient protection and support, which contributed to the injury.

Giardina is represented by Pensacola attorney Samuel W. Bearman.

“We will be claiming in excess of $1 million,” Bearman said. “We’re at least a year and a half, maybe two years away from a trial.”

Bearman said more than 100 former NFL players have filed similar lawsuits, most against Riddell, claiming that its helmets do not provide the protection they are supposed to provide and the players have suffered brain injuries.

GBSA is represented by attorney Peter S. Roumbos of Pensacola. Aphone message left Monday seeking comment was not returned prior to press time.