Cowboys Stadium Ice Lawsuit Heads to Court

Jury selection began Monday in the civil trial of a stagehand that sued the Cowboys, NFL, and designers of AT&T Stadium after a large piece of ice fell from the stadium roof and struck him in 2011.

Severin Sampson, a stagehand who was preparing for the halftime show at Super Bowl XLV in 2011, said he was outside the stadium when a huge chunk of ice fell off the roof of what was then called Cowboys Stadium — now AT&T Stadium.

"The boulder was about the size of a Volkswagen and the sheet of ice behind the boulder was about as big as the infield,” he said. "And there was no way for me to get out from underneath it."

It fractured Sampson's skull, ruptured his eardrum, and injured his brain, he said.

He said he still hears constant ringing in his ear.

"The worst part is I'll never hear silence again,” Sampson said. “I will never, ever hear silence again."

Sampson has filed a lawsuit against the Dallas Cowboys and the stadium designers.

Cowboys spokesman Brett Daniels said the team had no comment on the case, which is set to go to trial on Monday.

Though neither the team nor their lawyers have made a statement about the case, NBC 5 crews have seen workers clearing ice off the top of the stadium on at least two occasions following icy conditions.