PFT: NFL declines to release Elliott investigative report, transcript of hearing

gimmesix

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once again you need to understand that this is NOT a first amendment situation since the NFL is NOT press/media. The bar is MUCH lower.

If he's going to sue for defamation, slander or libel, then his lawyers will have to meet the legal definitions of those words. At the heart of all three is that the information has to be lies.
 

diefree666

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The Federal court ruled the Goodell has the authority to suspend players based on code of conduct detrimental to the league... so Goodell is on legal standing to suspend players........four independent individuals looked at all the evidence and concluded the preponderance of evidence in their opinion concluded Zeke was responsible for her injuries......they sent that report to Goodell who then suspended him.....


Independent? Chosen by the NFL they are NOT independent.
 

calico

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I live in an NFL city that is not Dallas, and as far as the court of public opinion goes, I think I have a good feel for what non-Cowboys fans are on this situation based on debates I have had with friends and colleagues. AT least in Green Bay anyways. Almost every person that I have had discussions with on the Zeke situation has been siding with the NFL and they feel he is guilty and deserves the suspension. This can be expected since the info they are receiving is mostly from the side of the alleged victim via the NFL. That being said, if the rest of the non-Cowboy country is experiencing what I am experiencing, it is going to be very hard for the NFL to back-off this suspension. Guilty or not, if the NFL reduces or eliminates the suspension at this point, I feel they are going to be getting some significant backlash from the public.

As a Cowboys fan, I don't like it at all.

This could get even uglier yet.

yup. i heard a national radio show destroying zeke for being a woman abuser and jerry jones condones it etc. someone called in defending zeke by referencing the texts and the signed witness statement and the hosts cut him off saying 'come on u dont know that happened!!' just brushing away key evidence as heresay and going with what they FEEL happened.

zekes rep is ruined by the nfl.
 

tyke1doe

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The League has ACTED as if they had legal standing. They have come to a verdict and convicted him with what looks to be tainted evidence at best.
The labled him a woman beater after the justice system refused to prosecute.

With all the federal laws and regulations a smart lawyer should be able to find the NFL did something wrong here.
The league issued its punishment based on its conduct clause. The clause itself is nebulous (unless there are specific examples of bad conduct) and a catch-all that can include criminal and non-criminal behavior. If so, I don't see where Zeke's team can argue he was branded a criminal when the league can counter that he merely exhibited conduct that gave the league a black eye.

Remember, the league has its lawyers too. They carefully weighed the decision with a legal perspective in mind.
 

diefree666

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If he's going to sue for defamation, slander or libel, then his lawyers will have to meet the legal definitions of those words. At the heart of all three is that the information has to be lies.


No he only has to show that there is not enough evidence to prove THEIR claims. Once again you need to read up on the difference between media/press and not as regards slander/libel.
 

mugsybows

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Exactly, If a guy robs a bank and he is not charged with robbing the bank because of lack of evidence, and now someone comes along and says they have prove that the guy robbed a bank, wouldn't the authorities reopen the case and charge the guy with robbing the bank if this "Evidence" was legit?

It really makes you wonder.
they dont have anything the police didnt have. they worded their summary to fit their verdict. even with the pictures they made it seem they have pictures of him actually hitting her, if they did those would be "leaked" by now.
 

diefree666

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The league issued its punishment based on its conduct clause. The clause itself is nebulous (unless there are specific examples of bad conduct) and a catch-all that can include criminal and non-criminal behavior. If so, I don't see where Zeke's team can argue he was branded a criminal when the league can counter that he merely exhibited conduct that gave the league a black eye.

Remember, the league has its lawyers too. They carefully weighed the decision with a legal perspective in mind.

NO they called him a woman beater. That is what you are ignoring.
 

Jake

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As an employer, they open themselves to litigation by making an employee investigation public. That's true of any employer.

Now they do have to share it with Zeke's lawyers, and if he wants to release it he can.
 

Doomsday101

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The league issued its punishment based on its conduct clause. The clause itself is nebulous (unless there are specific examples of bad conduct) and a catch-all that can include criminal and non-criminal behavior. If so, I don't see where Zeke's team can argue he was branded a criminal when the league can counter that he merely exhibited conduct that gave the league a black eye.

Remember, the league has its lawyers too. They carefully weighed the decision with a legal perspective in mind.

League lawyers have a history of losing. Jerry has taken on the league himself, as did Al Davis and both have won vs the league. I'm not saying this is a slam dunk by any means for Elliott but what I would say if I was in Zeke shoes is my reputation matters and will fight the devil to protect it. At least for me my reputation as a person and as a man is the most valuable asset I own and I would be damned before I would allow anyone to taint that.
 

SultanOfSix

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I don't think the court took that into consideration. In general, the courts are very reluctant to get involved in private business matters governed by their own rules and regulations.

I know many of us are hoping, but after further research, I don't see Zeke fairing any better than Brady did.
Zeke's case is strongly tied to legality, despite the facade about it being mostly about personal conduct. Brady's case had to do with violation of the rules (and he hence the integrity) of the game. The latter is controlled by the league. The former is not.

These are two completely different scenarios.

Also, the league itself is a special case. It is effectively a "legal monopoly". It has been granted special place by the legal system in this country, and so it needs to be held to a higher standard of accountability. It's not like Zeke can go to an equivalent competitor and earn the same income elsewhere. It's a privilege to play in the NFL, but it is also a privilege to be the NFL.
 

tyke1doe

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But this is NOT a private business matter when you come down to it. You seem to think that a private business can do whatever it wants to and the courts have shown otherwise.
Yes, the NFL is a private business, private as opposed to public.
Second, the courts have shown otherwise on constitutional points. For example, a private business cannot violate an employee's constitutional rights or violate antitrust laws. But outside that, the courts have been reluctant to interfere with private matters beyond the overreaching constitutional and antitrust issues.
Third, why are you making this personal to me? I'm just conveying my observations based on my experience as a court reporter.
 

The Quest for Six

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Independent? Chosen by the NFL they are NOT independent.

MEMBERS OF THE EXTERNAL EXPERT ADVISORY PANEL


PETER HARVEY, Esq., former Attorney General for the State of New Jersey.

KEN HOUSTON, member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, who played in 14 seasons in the NFL.

TONYA LOVELACE, MA, Chief Executive Officer of The Women of Color Network, Inc.

MARY JO WHITE, Esq., former United States attorney and former Chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission.
 

gimmesix

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As an employer, they open themselves to litigation by making an employee investigation public. That's true of any employer.

Now they do have to share it with Zeke's lawyers, and if he wants to release it he can.

Yes, we may see it as the league trying to hide the evidence, but it's really just protecting itself legally.
 

erod

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CowboysZone LOYAL Fan
The Federal court ruled the Goodell has the authority to suspend players based on code of conduct detrimental to the league... so Goodell is on legal standing to suspend players........four independent individuals looked at all the evidence and concluded the preponderance of evidence in their opinion concluded Zeke was responsible for her injuries......they sent that report to Goodell who then suspended him.....
You're going to disappear like a fart in the wind when this blows up in the league's face.

It's snowballing against Goodell and the league. This was HORRIBLY handled, and is based on nothing but their whims. Barney Fife could have done a better job.

The evidence primarily shows that this is nothing but a habitually lying scorned stripper who was mad because she lost her meal ticket. She wasn't having any part of the breakup, and she sought revenge. Stable people don't write "sex slave" on a police report as their occupation. Stable women aren't known for frequent cat fights.

She "decided" she was Zeke's exclusive girlfriend despite mountains of evidence to the contrary, and then when he broke it off for good, she went crazy. Happens all day, every day, in America with girls of her ilk.

Zeke will take this to court, get an injunction, drag this out, and gain public support as this girl's disheveled life and vindictive ways gets sprawled across the internet even further.

Unless Goodell backs this off to a game or two now, I'll betcha he never serves a suspension for this.

My gut tells me he probably did get physical with her once or twice. My gut also tells me that LOTS of men and women have gotten physical with her because she's an out-of-control, ill-tempered, crazy wench.
 

tyke1doe

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Zeke's case is strongly tied to legality, despite the facade about it being about personal conduct. Brady's case had to do with violation of the rules (and he hence the integrity) of the game. The latter is controlled by the league. The former is not.

These are two completely different scenarios.

No, the Brady case had to do with whether the NFL could punish Brady according to its rules. The court said it could.

As I noted in a previous post, the league didn't say Zeke beat his ex. It said he exhibited conduct that didn't meet the league's policy. And it punished him according to that policy, which is much broader and, I would say, more nebulous.
 

tyke1doe

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I don't know about that Brady destroyed evidence (his phone). In Zeke case all they have are pictures which I have seen and this womans word which she has already shown herself as a liar. The bruises she has could have easily came from the altercation she had with another woman which there is clear cut evidence of that event and other bruises which any person can get. Zeke has handed over all the league has asked, how the league has come to this conclusion is baffling
I agree.
 
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