A jiu-jitsu student was awarded a staggering $56 million payout after a shocking accident left him a quadriplegic.
White belt Jack Greener, 30, was sparring with second-degree black belt teacher Francisco Iturralde when his cervical vertebrae was crushed in a terrifying move.
Greener filed a lawsuit against the Del Mar Jiu Jitsu club in San Diego, California, owned by a man named Michael Phelps, on the grounds that the club was responsible for fractured neck and spinal cord injury that forever altered his life on November 29, 2018.
An appellate district court awarded Greener $46 million in damages in 2023, and the California Supreme Court declined to review an appeal on May 20, which closed the case. Now with post-judgment interest, Greener’s total exceeds $56 million.
The California Supreme Court’s decision represents a long battle for Greener, who was hospitalized for months after the accident and suffered multiple strokes.
According to his website, he was in surgery for nine hours to remove the blood clots in his brain and was given two days to show improvement, or he’d be offered assisted suicide.
He was weeks away from graduating college and was hoping to start his career as a professional surf instructor when he was paralyzed.
Greener started the sport in 2015 and was a white belt, which is the first level in jiu-jitsu, before he sparred with Iturralde in 2018
He attended classes at a different dojo but stopped because it was too far from his home, according to the court judgement.
Greener then started classes at the Del Mar Jiu Jitsu club in early November 2018. Later that month, he sparred with his instructor at the end of a class.
He was in the ‘turtle position’ with his elbows and knees on the floor when Iturralde ‘lost control and injured Greener.’
Iturralde testified that Greener seemed highly experienced for a white belt and had expressed a desire to be competitive in the sport.
He admitted that the move was ‘dangerous’ and he wouldn’t execute it if he ‘could not safely’ do so.
‘While sparring with Greener during a BJJ class, Iturralde gave no demonstration or active instruction,’ the court judgement read.
‘Instead, he acted more like a student coparticipant than an instructor when he immobilized and executed a series of maneuvers on Greener.
‘But as an instructor with superior knowledge and skill of BJJ, Iturralde was differently situated from other students, and thus he can—and we conclude should—be held to a different standard.’
The court concluded that there was evidence Iturralde ‘knew he had created a situation posing a heightened risk to Greener’s safety’ and argued that the risk of immobilizing a student is not inherent in jiu jitsu sparring.
Phelps and Iturralde’s representation argued that students should assume risk when participating in combat sports, but the court maintained that the black-belt instructors should be held to a higher standard than their student counterparts.
One of Greener’s attorneys, Rahul Ravipudi, told local NBC affiliate, KNSD, that the court’s ruling, ‘cements a critical legal victory not only for our client, but also for injured athletes across California by reaffirming that sports instructors and facilities may be held accountable when they unreasonably increase risks beyond those inherent in the sport.’
Greener has since used his story to motivate others and documented his journey to become one of only two people with his disability to go above 14,000 feet on foot when he climbed Mount Bross in Colorado, according to his website.
In January 2019, he started to regain movement and could walk with the help of a cane.
His next goal is to be the first with his condition to ascend Mount Whitney in California, which has an elevation of 14,505 feet.
Last November, he posted a reflection on his Instagram about the six years since he was paralyzed.
‘6 years to infinity. The PTSD of the actual situation has all but healed. Having spent April 23’ to now mending the prior four years. Which tbh is pretty cool. And I’m left to mend the remaining pieces as it pertains to courtrooms, suits and ties.
‘Honestly, I’ve not achieved much of anything in 2024 and have seemingly regressed in career, finances, etc. Much of it out of my control. But that’s ok, progress and growth isn’t linear.
‘The good news is I have a few doors in front of me And relatively speaking, I’m happy and secure. So here’s to hoping the right doors open.’
DailyMail.com reached out to attorneys for the Del Mar Jiu Jitsu club and Greener for additional comment, but didn’t immediately hear back.