Buzbee files suit against Brooks

Well-known Houston attorney Tony Buzbee, who also owns a home in Atlanta, has agreed to take the case of Blake Sampson, the two-year-old boy who was hospitalized in April of this year for life-threatening injuries.

Charles Brooks, Jr., who is accused of the abuse, was taken into custody Monday, May 3, at 3:38 p.m. by the Dallas County Sheriff ’s Office and charged with Injury to a Child/Elderly/Disabled Person with Intent to Cause Severe Bodily Injury and Serious Mental Deficiency or Impairment. This is a first-degree felony under Texas Penal Code 22.04, punishable by a maximum sentence of 99 years or life in prison and/or a maximum fine of $10,000.

After paying the $250,000 bond, the accused, Blake’s stepfather, walked out a free man.

Brooks is the grandson of the late Dr. Jessie Brooks of Atlanta.

On April 22, 2021, Blake Sampson – only two years old at the time – was reportedly beaten within inches of his life and left unresponsive while alone with Brooks in his Dallas home. Brooks allegedly told the child’s mother, Madison Ball, that Blake had fallen down the stairs.

Six months later he is still hospitalized, bedridden with a trach tube; the traumatic brain injury has left him just a shell of the happy, energetic child he used to be, the family says.

The 29 year-old Brooks has had seven arrests for charges including aggravated robbery and narcotics possession since 2013, but has been able to stay out of prison for any length of time. The child’s family is hoping that Brooks’ luck has run out this time, now that Blake’s mother, Madison Ball of Texarkana, has asked for help from attorney Buzbee. Buzbee, owner of The Buzbee Law Firm, is known for winning record amounts of damages in high-profile cases.

In a petition filed on Wednesday, November 17, 2021, in Dallas County, Buzbee is demanding a jury trial and seeks $25 million in compensatory damages for Blake’s ongoing medical care, and $100 million in punitive damages “to punish and make an example out of Defendant Charles Brooks, Jr.” The awarded monies will be held in a fund controlled by an independent trustee.

The injury to Blake occurred at Brooks’ Dallas home while the child was in his care. According to the petition, Madison was in Texarkana at the time and asked Brooks to facetime a phone call with her so that she could check on Blake after Brooks told her that the child had fallen.

Upon seeing her son unresponsive, she called for an ambulance, despite Brooks threatening to “snap her neck” if she did so. Upon arriving at Medical City Dallas Hospital, Blake was found to have a severe brain bleed with swelling and adult bite marks on both of his legs.

He was diagnosed with a traumatic brain injury, chronic respiratory failure, seizure disorder, urethral trauma, and traumatic hemorrhage of the bilateral retina.

Blake was admitted to the ICU and placed in a medically induced coma with a drain placed in his brain. Since entering the hospital, Blake “has spent all but four weeks confined to a hospital bed,” the petition reads.

“Blake has suffered from three strokes and continues to battle his traumatic brain injury which caused severe damage to his ability to breath and has severely impaired his motor skills. Accordingly, Blake has undergone multiple surgeries to clear his airways, had a tracheostomy inserted into the front of his windpipe, and must sleep on machines to keep his oxygen level at a stable condition.”

The petition goes on to list his injuries: “He requires a tracheostomy tube and is bedridden. He cannot walk and cannot survive for long periods of time without a breathing machine.

Blake has severe brain damage. He will have a hole in his trachea for his lifetime, will have a relearn how to walk, and due to his severe brain damage, will require 24-hour medical care for the rest of his life.”

“This lawsuit won’t fix Blake, but whatever money this monster of a stepfather has, I intend to get it for the lifelong care that Blake now needs,” Buzbee said in a Facebook post. “There is a backlog in the courts – our jails are full. But someone who would do that to a kid shouldn’t be walking around free.”

Buzbee, also in that same Facebook post, is urging others to call the Dallas County District Attorney’s office at 214-653-3600 and reference case number F2175752, in an effort to have the case placed on the docket soon.

“This defendant needs to be put under the jail,” said Buzbee. “I intend to make that happen.”