04/20/24
August 11, 2017
Ezekiel Elliott suspended by NFL: Ezekiel Elliott was suspended for six games Friday by the National Football League. The league said the suspension followed a year-long investigation into domestic violence allegations made by a former girlfriend.
I wish the NFL would defer to the authorities on criminal allegations and not take action until a charge is filed. Nobody trusts Goodell to get something like this right or impose punishments equitably.
posted by rcade at 03:12 PM on August 12, 2017
Blame political correctness run amok for this sort of thing. One who is accused of anything that the masses deem inappropriate is convicted in the court of public opinion regardless of the facts. Investigations into the circumstances surrounding the incident will usually take weeks, if not months and years. Yet during all this time the "guilty party" stands accused, and all who give him any support or employment are equally guilty. By the time the investigations are complete, the story is old news and any exoneration of the person involved is ignored. Thus the NFL is forced into imposing a suspension without considering what the investigation reveals. To be honest, I am often guilty of this behavior. I know I should wait for the facts, but it is far too tempting to jump into the argument, and when a team of which you are not a fan is involved, it's way too easy.
posted by Howard_T at 05:30 PM on August 12, 2017
Yeah, the other three incidents in which he allegedly sexually assaulted or beat people up are probably all totally made up, too.
posted by Etrigan at 09:57 PM on August 12, 2017
all totally made up, too.
Please note that I never claimed that any allegations made against Bryant were false. Once such allegations are made, they must be proven before anyone is punished. The unfortunate thing is that there are federal laws that permit one who is merely suspected of a crime to have his assets seized before any trial. This usually renders the accused unable to mount a defense, since he has no means to pay an attorney. These laws are being looked at now, and there is some movement to easing them. Back to Bryant's case, the league may suspend him out of "concerns about his moral character", but this is possible only due to the nature of the contract between the league and the players' association. Were Bryant an employee of a private corporation, he could be suspended, but once no charges were brought, his employer would be required to reinstate him and make some settlement of back pay and allowances.
To make a long story short, the league can do whatever it wants because of the draconian nature of the agreement with the NFLPA. Whether it is right or not is a matter of opinion. My opinion is that the NFL has allowed itself to be influenced by political correctness, but in the NFL's defense, had they not done so, the probability is that there would have been an adverse reaction in the media. We all know that Roger Goodell could never permit that.
posted by Howard_T at 11:14 PM on August 12, 2017
First you blamed political correctness, now it's civil forfeiture laws? What and ever.
posted by Etrigan at 12:09 AM on August 13, 2017
For some reason I had Desmond Bryant on my mind rather than Ezekiel Elliott. At my age this is a dangerous sign. Anyway, I was very clumsily trying to make the point that political correctness, in so far as it tends to presume the guilt of unpopular persons or ideas, is as harmful as the civil asset seizure laws. I really shouldn't try to reason late at night.
posted by Howard_T at 10:49 AM on August 13, 2017
I wish the NFL would defer to the authorities on criminal allegations and not take action until a charge is filed
I agree somewhat with this, but prefer the NFL's approach.
The unfortunate reality with the US legal system is that those with money are rarely found guilty. They simply pay to make their crimes go away.
Wasn't it Hardy where people actually witnessed the assaults that never officially happened (legally) because the victim wouldn't testify? What about the Ray Rice situation that the NFL got roasted on first for stepping in where the "law" should handle the situation then for being too weak when video evidence was released?
posted by cixelsyd at 10:15 PM on August 13, 2017
If I am understanding this right, Elliott has been suspended without clear evidence of his crime and with potential evidence of innocence being ignored by the NFL? Gee, that sounds awful.
posted by yerfatma at 03:21 PM on August 15, 2017
If the courts do not feel there is enough evidence to prosecute him then the NFL should not take any action against him. The police caught her lying about the allegations. Reminds me of the Kurt Busch suspension by NASCAR, a vengeful former girlfriend lying to try and ruin his career. They need to go by the findings of the police and prosecutors.