Michael Oher, the retired NFL player who alleged the Tuhoy family profited off of his life story, filed his petition against the family who ‘adopted’ him. His former football coach is now speaking out about the situation.
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00:00 In a new update on the blindside story,
00:02 real life coach Hugh Freeze told The Athletic
00:05 that he thinks the quote, "facts will come out."
00:08 This all comes as Michael O'Her filed his petition
00:10 claiming the Tui family lied about adopting him
00:13 and tricked him into a conservatorship.
00:15 Michael O'Her, the retired NFL player
00:21 who alleged the Tui family profited off his life story,
00:24 filed his petition against the family who quote,
00:26 "adopted him."
00:27 And now his former football coach is speaking out
00:29 about the situation.
00:30 It's Anil Wani reporting.
00:32 Hugh Freeze, who worked with O'Her as the coach
00:34 at Briarcrest Christian High School in Memphis
00:36 and then as the assistant coach at Ole Miss,
00:39 noted quote, "I think it's sad in regards to the controversy.
00:42 "The Tui family, who claimed they had filed
00:44 "a conservatorship in order to meet NAACP standards,
00:47 "have been speaking to press claiming
00:49 "the false adoption allegations are simply not true."
00:52 However, in regards to the entire situation,
00:54 Coach Freeze went on to say quote,
00:56 "I certainly don't claim to understand
00:58 "all the ins and outs of adoption, conservatory,
01:00 "and all that.
01:01 "I know what I witnessed.
01:02 "I witnessed a family that totally took in a young man
01:05 "and I think without that, there is no story."
01:08 In regards to the lawsuit,
01:09 Sean Tui told the Daily Memphian on August 14th,
01:12 claiming he was quote, "devastated by the allegations,"
01:14 adding quote, "It's upsetting to think
01:16 "we would make money off any of our children."
01:19 Since the filing, the family has shared
01:21 that they plan to voluntarily terminate
01:23 O'Her's conservatorship after nearly 20 years.
01:25 However, their lawyer, Marty Singer,
01:27 also blasted the claims of financial gain as quote,
01:30 "absurd" and quote, "transparently ridiculous."
01:34 He stated quote, "The Tui's opened their home
01:36 "to Mr. O'Her, offered him structure, support,
01:39 "and most of all, unconditional love.
01:41 "They have consistently treated him like a son
01:43 "and one of their three children."
01:44 O'Her is now 37 years old and married with four children.
01:47 He expressed in a statement saying he was quote,
01:49 "disheartened by the revelation shared in the lawsuit,"
01:52 alleging the filing he learned about in February of 2023
01:55 did not give him legal adoption status to the Tui's.
01:58 The former athlete claims in his petition
01:59 that the family secured a deal worth $225,000,
02:03 plus 2.5% of the film's net proceeds.
02:06 The movie starring Sandra Bullock and Tim McGraw
02:08 earned nearly $300 million at the box office.
02:10 Attorney Randall Fishman and attorney Steve Fares
02:13 also disputed O'Her's claims
02:14 that each of the four family members
02:16 was paid for the movie and he was not.
02:18 The legal team disputed the claim,
02:20 stating that each family member
02:21 received the same amount of money split five ways evenly.
02:24 Fares also stated that O'Her managed all of his own finances
02:28 without interference from the Tui's.
02:30 Quote, "He entered his own contract.
02:32 He has his own agents," the attorney said.
02:33 As for why the conservatorship was not terminated sooner,
02:36 allegedly no one had even thought about it.
02:38 According to the legal team,
02:39 the Tui's and O'Her have been estranged
02:41 for at least 10 years.
02:43 We'll keep you updated with the story at What's Trending.
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