The Story of Julia Pernsteiner and Her family’s Lawsuit Against Her Coach and University

By Dr. Robert J. Romano, JD, LLM, St. John’s University, Senior Writer On November 8, 2021, Julia Pernsteiner, a twenty-three-year-old Division I student-athlete at Jacksonville University, committed suicide while alone in her dorm room – her death being another needless tragedy in what is becoming an all-too-common occurrence among our young college athletes. By her own account, Julia wasn’t the best athlete or student. In fact, in an email she sent to Jacksonville’s athletic dire