‘Gipper’ lawsuit dismissed

HOUGHTON, Mich. (AP) — A defendant in a lawsuit stemming from the exhumation of Notre Dame football legend George Gipp’s body said Thursday that a judge has dismissed the case.


Two men claiming to be Gipp’s cousins sued in November, contending that the remains of the player’s sister, Bertha Isabelle Gipp Martin, were disturbed because workers initially dug in the wrong spot. She was buried next to her brother.


The remains of Gipp, who died in 1920 of pneumonia, were dug up Oct. 4 for DNA testing to determine whether he had fathered his girlfriend’s child. The results were negative.


Defendants included ESPN, which recorded the exhumation for a planned newsmagazine program; and Mike Bynum, a Birmingham, Ala., sports writer who helped arrange the exhumation. Bynum said a Houghton County judge dismissed the case Thursday.


Bynum said in a statement e-mailed to The Associated Press that the lawsuit filed by Omdahl on behalf of the Gipps was frivolous.