Chargers fans ask city attorney to file antitrust lawsuit against team
A group of embittered fans recently asked San Diego City Attorney Jan Goldsmith to file an antitrust lawsuit against the Chargers for their involvement in building a new stadium in Carson, Calif.
Carson City Council approved a joint venture for the Chargers and Oakland Raiders in April, and the Chargers could depart to Los Angeles County if the move is approved by 24 of the league's 32 owners.
In a letter written by a group calling itself the Citizens of the City and County of San Diego, a number of contentious issues are outlined regarding a possible Chargers move.
"We believe the NFL League and its club member, the San Diego Chargers have failed to negotiate in good faith," the letter reads, according to Bleacher Report's Jason Cole. "At every turn in the negotiations, top NFL executives, including (NFL executive vice president) Eric Grubman, and representatives of the San Diego Chargers, including Mark Fabiani, continue to reject every legitimate effort to keep the Chargers in San Diego."
Fabiani, a political strategist by trade, is working as special counsel for the Chargers in stadium negotiations with the city. Formerly special counsel to President Bill Clinton, Fabiani dismissed the opposition group's grounds for an antitrust suit, according to Cole.
Reaction from #Chargers counsel Mark Fabiani to possible anti-trust suit. In a word, boom: pic.twitter.com/mZd5jsRBU3
— Jason Cole (@JasonPhilCole) June 22, 2015
The Chargers are likely to submit a bid for relocation ahead of the NFL's December 15 deadline.
Last week, the Chargers said that there wouldn't be enough time to conduct a city-wide vote on funding for a new building in San Diego ahead of the deadline.