The wife of a Detroit-area soccer referee filed a $51 million lawsuit Friday against a hot-headed player who is in prison for throwing a punch that killed her husband during a game last summer. The figure represents $1 million for each of the 51 additional years that John Bieniewicz, 44, could have lived, according to the lawsuit in Wayne County court. Kristen Bieniewicz of Westland, the representative of her husband's estate, is suing Bassel Saad, along with another man who controlled the team and the soccer league. Kristen Bieniewicz of Westland (pictured left with her late husband) has filed a $51 million lawsuit against Bassel Saad (right) who is in prison for throwing a punch that killed her husband during a game last summer . Bieniewicz died after Saad punched him in the head just moments before Saad would have been ejected from a weekend game in Livonia. Dr. Jamal Saleh said he rushed toward Bieniewicz, who was on his back grasping a yellow card in one hand and a red card in the other, and performed CPR which failed to work. 'We hope this lawsuit sends a message that when you commit uncivilized acts in a civilized world there are consequences, even beyond the criminal realm,' said attorney James Acho, who had known Bieniewicz since childhood. Cyril Hall, Saad's attorney in the criminal case, said Friday that the lawsuit surprises him. 'Bassel Saad is not an individual of wealth. He was a mechanic,' Hall said. Behind bars: Saad, 37, was recently sentenced to at least eight years in prison after pleading guilty to involuntary manslaughter . The Associated Press left messages seeking comment from a telephone listing for the soccer league. Saad, 37, was recently sentenced to at least eight years in prison after pleading guilty to involuntary manslaughter. He expressed remorse in court and said he prays for the Bieniewicz family. The lawsuit also names the Michigan United Soccer League, which is accused of allowing Saad to play despite his reputation as a violent player. Citing his doctor, the lawsuit described Bieniewicz, who had two children, as being in great health with the potential to live to age 95. Bieniewicz is pictured being administered CPR on the turf after being knocked out cold by Saad . 'I speak for his dozens of buddies, many of whom go back to our days at Catholic Central High, and we want justice for his family,' said Acho, who is handling the case with co-counsel Karen Daley. In 2005, Saad was involved in another assault on a soccer field. Court documents obtained by Detroit Free Press indicate that he repeatedly struck another player in the head. Saad pleaded no contest in that case and was sentenced to five days of community service and 12 months of probation. Mrs Bieniewicz testified at Michigan's Capitol earlier this year in support of proposed legislation that would make it a felony to assault a sports official in the state. Referees ‘are out there on an island with no one to defend them,' she said. 'Something more than a misdemeanor should be in place.' Mrs Bieniewicz said that through everything, her only consolation has been the thought that her husband died doing something he loved.
Kristen Bieniewicz of Westland is suing Bassel Saad, who was convicted of involuntary manslaughter and is serving eight to 15 years in prison .
Another man who controlled the team and the soccer league is also listed in the lawsuit .
Bieniewicz died after Saad punched him in the head just moments before Saad would have been ejected from a weekend game in Livonia .