Orioles legend Jim Palmer, family allegedly victims of fraud

Baltimore Orioles legend Jim Palmer and his family are heading to court alleging they were defrauded by a now former family friend.

Tyler Kepner of The Athletic reported that Palmer has filed a civil suit against former family friend Warren Michael Holmes. Holmes had allegedly claimed to be a prominent British hair stylist and was looking to branch out. The suit claims that Palmer and his family were defrauded out of nearly $1M in personal and business loans to begin a line of beauty products. Holmes is now being sued for breach of contract, negligent representation, fraud, and unjust enrichment.

Holmes had gained access to Palmer through his stepson. Palmer's stepson is autistic, with Holmes building such a bond with him and the family that he was named the stepson's guardian and manager of his trust. That level of trust does not happen by accident. Ultimately, the Palmer family wants to make sure that Holmes does not do the same to another family.

Palmer said as such as well. He noted that he is 78 years old and has to be aware of his mortality. While his wife is 21 years younger, his family has a history of Alzheimer's. Holmes had made his family feel as though his stepson would be taken care of if anything were to happen. To them, that piece of mind was "priceless."

Regardless of how the lawsuit turns out, it is a terrible situation for Palmer and his family. They had been looking to take care of their family only to have their trust broken. The fact that Palmer's stepson was used as a pawn in the alleged fraud makes it even more painful.