NASCAR wants appeal to continue despite Jeremy Mayfield’s request to drop injunction quest
NASCAR wants the U.S. Court of Appeals to hear its appeal of an injunction concerning driver Jeremy Mayfield (pictured).
// Jeff Robinson, NASCAR Scene
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NASCAR wants the U.S. Court of Appeals to hear its appeal of an injunction that suspended driver Jeremy Mayfield apparently is no longer interested in obtaining.
In a filing Monday, NASCAR stated there are issues related to the appeal that it wants decided as soon as possible.
Mayfield, who was suspended by NASCAR for what it says was a May 1 positive test for methamphetamines, obtained an injunction July 1 from U.S. District Court Judge Graham Mullen that temporarily reinstated him. The appeals court granted NASCAR’s request for a stay of the injunction July 24, and Mayfield has been suspended since then. Mayfield has sold his team, and the earliest he could get back on the track is next year since the appeal hearing is not scheduled until Dec. 1.
In a filing last Wednesday, Mayfield asked that NASCAR’s appeal to be sent back to Mullen, who has indicated in other decisions that he would now rule in favor of NASCAR and not Mayfield after the disputed results of tests taken July 6 were submitted to the court as well as additional affidavits.
But NASCAR’s filing Monday indicates that NASCAR wants the Dec. 1 hearing to go on as scheduled, at least in part because it wants certain issues brought up in the case to be decided. Any decision by the appeals court would set a legal precedent, which could impact future lawsuits.
“This Court should address now – not months from now – those issues and findings in the [injunction] order which would have allowed Mayfield to endanger the lives of thousands of people by enjoining NASCAR’s suspension of an illegal drug user,” NASCAR states in its filing.
The issues include:
• Whether there is a same-day test for methamphetamine available. NASCAR argues there is not a same-day test for methamphetamine that would let NASCAR test a driver and later that day determine whether that driver could race on a given weekend.
• Whether keeping a driver such as Mayfield off the track constitutes “irreparable harm.” NASCAR argues that Mayfield did not show that he needed the injunction to prevent damages that couldn’t be compensated by a monetary award.
• Whether the public interest is served in the issuance of the injunction. NASCAR argues that in a disputed drug-test case the public interest of the safety of spectators outweighs the public interest of a driver’s right to make a living.
Without the injunction, Mayfield would not be allowed to compete in NASCAR until the case is resolved. A trial would not come until September 2010 at the earliest.
Mayfield, who qualified for five of the first 11 Sprint Cup races this season after starting his own team and has 433 career series starts, is the only Cup driver to be suspended under NASCAR’s random drug-testing policy implemented this year. He has sued NASCAR to get back on the track and for financial damages.
Mayfield has denied using methamphetamines and contends the drug-test findings that prompted his suspension resulted from a combination of prescription drug Adderall, which is used to treat attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, and over-the-counter Claritin-D allergy medicine.
He has also contended that NASCAR must follow guidelines that regulate federal agencies. NASCAR denies that Aegis Sciences Corp., which conducts the NASCAR drug-testing program, must follow those regulations.
NASCAR argues that a second, so-called B sample can be tested by the same laboratory, a procedure used by the National Football League, National Hockey League, Major League Baseball and the Indy Racing League. Mayfield has argued that he should have the right to choose where the B sample is tested.
After Mayfield won the injunction, NASCAR obtained another urine sample from Mayfield on July 6 that NASCAR says also tested positive for methamphetamines. Mayfield has filed documentation from a test he said he took within an hour of the NASCAR test, and the independent sample was not positive for methamphetamines.
NASCAR has countersued Mayfield for violating the agreement drivers sign with NASCAR to obtain their license. Part of that agreement includes following the terms of the substance-abuse policy, which requires drivers to inform NASCAR of any changes in medication they take.
