Jerry! Jerry! Jerry! You’re in trouble! The Alvey family in Louisville, Kentucky, is suing the Jerry Springer Show after Blake Alvey shot and killed himself after appearing on the May 24, 2018, episode.
During the episode, Alvey’s fiancee revealed that she had been cheating on him with one of his friends. Not only that, she also said she was leaving him and had sold the engagement ring. The suit alleges that the show set him up to be ambushed knowing it would “elicit an extreme reaction” from Alvey, according to court documents obtained by local news website WDRB.
The lawsuit, which was filed last week in Jefferson Circuit Court, went on to accuse the show of “reckless disregard for the lives and safety of others.”
Alvey shot and killed himself on June 3, 2018, just days after his episode aired. His actions, according to the lawsuit obtained by WDRB, were “a result of severe and emotional and mental suffering and anguish.”
The long-running tabloid talk show created “great emotional distress” for Alvey, Brenton Stanley, the lawyer representing his family and infant son, said in a statement, “leading to his tragic and untimely death.”
Stanley’s statement went on to say: “The Jerry Springer Show was designed to humiliate and exploit people like Blake, while the Defendants disregard the devastating consequences that their conduct can have on people’s lives. We will fight to hold them accountable.”
In addition to the show, NBC and Alvey’s former fiancee are named in the suit, per WDRB. It is seeking a jury trial and unspecified damages.
NBC confirmed to the Associated Press in June 2018 that after 4,000 episodes and 27 seasons, there were currently no plans for any new episodes of the show that has long featured vicious verbal attacks and brutal brawls on stage.
