​A federal judge has issued several pretrial rulings in the bankruptcy case of former Colorado football player Shilo Sanders that will shape the scope of evidence allowed at his coming bankruptcy trial Aug. 31.Judge Michael Romero held a private hearing about these issues in Denver on July 14, with no outside observers allowed to attend because the requests were filed under seal and relate to evidence when Shilo was a minor in 2015. But the bankruptcy court filed a summary of his rulings July 15.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThey all relate to an incident at Sanders’ school in September 2015 — an incident that led him to file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in October 2023 with more than $11 million in debt, almost all of it owed to one man, John Darjean, a former security guard at the school in Dallas.Shilo Sanders, 26, is the middle son of Colorado coach Deion Sanders and the older brother of Cleveland Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders.1 / 30Cleveland Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders and his father Deion Sanders on the sideline before the game against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Huntington Bank Field on Dec. 28, 2025. Shedeur Sanders made seven starts during his rookie season with the Browns, going 3-4 in those games.(Ken Blaze, Imagn Images)The judge partly granted and denied Shilo Sanders’ request challenging possible expert witness testimony for Darjean. The court said it might allow expert testimony “on the issue of whether reasonable force was used in rebuttal to (Sanders’) self-defense arguments.”AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementDarjean sued Shilo Sanders in 2016, accusing him of assaulting him and causing permanent injuries when he tried to confiscate his phone at school. Sanders claimed self-defense but didn’t show up for the trial in 2022, leading to a $11.89 million default judgment against Sanders. Sanders is now trying to get out of that debt in bankruptcy court, but Darjean is fighting to keep him on the hook for it.The judge granted Sanders’ request concerning evidence related to his time at the Letot juvenile detention facility in Texas, with one exception — that records containing “party admissions” may be admissible. Such records theoretically could include statements Sanders made at the time. Sanders was taken to the facility the next day after a separate incident at school, according to court records. Darjean was taken to the hospital after the incident, according to court records.Separately, the judge denied, at least for now, Sanders’ requests to limit evidence about his prior and subsequent disciplinary history and other state agency records involving Sanders. The judge also denied Sanders’ request to limit the timeframe of the inquiry at trial. These denials were made “without prejudice,” which means the judge could change his mind depending on later circumstances.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement“The Court will address specific objections relating to the evidence addressed in