NASCAR
has indefinitely suspended Kurt Busch, in the aftermath of a ruling
in Kent County (Del.) Family Court that said the former Sprint Cup Series
champion “more likely than not… committed an act of abuse" against former
girlfriend Patricia Driscoll at Dover International Speedway in September of last
year.
A written
statement from the sanctioning body said, “Given the serious nature of the
findings and conclusions made by the Commissioner of the Family Court of the
State of Delaware, NASCAR has indefinitely suspended driver Kurt Busch,
effective immediately. He will not be allowed to race nor participate in any
NASCAR activities until further notice.
“Kurt
Busch and his Stewart-Haas Racing team are fully aware of our position and why
this decision was made. We will continue to respect the process and timetable
of the authorities involved.”
Kent
County (Del.) Family Court Commissioner David Jones granted Driscoll’s request for a
no-contact order against Busch earlier this week, finding that
based on the evidence, there was more than a 50% probability that "the respondent (Busch) committed an act of abuse...
by manually strangling Petitioner with his left hand while placing his right
hand against her chin and face, causing her head to strike the interior wall of
Respondent’s motor home, thereby recklessly causing physical injury to
Petitioner.”
In his ruling, Jones said Driscoll’s testimony was
“corroborated by documentary evidence, including photographs of her injuries
and text communications between the parties both before and after the incident
and the fact that her testimony regarding those incidents is corroborated in
important respects by the credible testimony of other witnesses and based upon
the court’s finding that her version of the events is believable given the
totality of the other evidence given at the trial.”
In addition, Jones said of Busch’s witnesses -- administrative
assistant Kristy Cloutier and motorhome driver Michael Doncheff -- “were so
dramatically tarnished by their obvious bias and personal financial interest in
Respondent’s public image and racing career… that their testimony is unworthy
of consideration.”
In summation, Jones wrote that “the court finds the
Respondent’s version of the events of Sept. 16, 2014 to be less believable than
Petitioner’s version…”
Multiple sources say JR Motorsports NASCAR XFINITY Series
driver Regan Smith will replace Busch at the wheel of the No. 41 Haas
Automation Chevrolet in Sunday’s Daytona 500.
Guilty before proven innocent. Nice way to ruin a potentially innocent guy's career.
ReplyDeleteDoes less believable then the other person make you guilty? It was only an opinion no charges have been filed. NASCAR was a little premature on this one. what has this country come to when a he said she said incident can possibly cost a man his career without actual evidence. NASCAR needs to rethink their position based on the fact they said they would wait to see if there was any charges filed.
ReplyDeleteWhat an ugly situation. Clearly, there are no winners, and there is no end in sight.
ReplyDeleteOnly the two litigants know what happened in the coach at Dover. Reading your article, the judge makes it clear that this is a "He said- She said" deal, and doesn't seem to have based his ruling on facts, but believability.
Ugliness [uhg-lee-ness] definition- See above article
I have been a devout NASCAR fan for over 30 years and I must say this is the most GUTLESS decision by any pro sports system I have ever seen. Whether he did it or not is NOT the issue. This issue is NASCAR has suspended a man a taken his career before any court date. It seems NASCAR has no spine what-so-ever and has proven that in the USA you are absolutely GUILTY UNTIL PROVEN INNOCENT. I have lost 100% respect for this sanctioning body. NASCAR YOU ARE A JOKE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteTypical injustice
ReplyDeletePROFANITY AND NAME-CALLING WILL NOT BE TOLERATED ON THIS SITE. YOUR OPINIONS ARE WELCOME, BUT ONLY IF YOU ARE CAPABLE OF EXPRESSING THEM IN AN ADULT, MATURE MANNER. REPEAT VIOLATORS WILL BE BLOCKED FROM POSTING COMMENTS IN THE FUTURE. THANK YOU.
ReplyDeleteTravis Kvapil was actually arrested, charged, and plead guilty of similar charges just over a year ago. However, he missed no races because of it. That might really come back to bite NASCAR if the media picks up on it.
ReplyDeleteHis name was not Busch
DeleteDave I know you don't like the land of IF, but say Kurt is not charged with anything by the DA, how does Nascar handle it at that point?
ReplyDeletehere is the thing nobody but Kurt and Driscoll were in the trailer this judge had to listen to all the testimony then agreed with Driscoll that she had but attacked and agreed to her restraining order that is as guilty as you need to be able to suspend somebody if you don't do something you are labeled as an enabler and domestic violence needs to be handled quickly and decisively because if not women will not speak up about the abuse done to them
ReplyDeleteTo those defending Kurt Busch - first, if there really was evidence of his innocence then this restraining order does not come down. Second, NASCAR's suspension is not just about this incident with Driscoll, it's about all the things Busch has done in his career leading up to this. His ugly history cannot be defended and I'm sick of people who seem unwilling to accept the idea that a major NASCAR star is just another OJ Simpson to be shunned.
ReplyDeleteI think Nascar jumped the gun on this one. I understand they have to worry about the optics surrounding a case like this, BUT there are no criminal charges as of yet and a lot of questionable circumstances attached to these allegations. Given the impact this can have on owners, teams , sponsors and Kurt's season and future. If it were me or my family, I'd want to see a conviction, before punishment. If this comes out in Bush's favor, he'll have already been punished and have a season ruined, doesn't seem like fair or equal treatment, unless Nascar bans Driscoll from its functions in the interm as well ??
ReplyDeleteso monkeys fan I guess the law doesn't matter....just whatever someone believes at the time or whatever personal vendetta needs to be played out. You and nascar need a constitutional lesson.
ReplyDelete