The court of sport differs from the court of law

In a state court of law, the prosecution would call the emotionally charged case of Carl Edwards vs. Brad Keselowski an open and shut case, a layup.

Exhibit A is a radio conversation between the defendant and his crew. Exhibit B is a nationally televised interview in which the defendant hints of a vigilante plan. Exhibit C is video of the flawless execution of said plan -- from five different angles I might add. And Exhibit D is the post-event Facebook posting from the defendant admitting and explaining why he carried out this plan.

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The prosecution could, and most likely would, pursue the most stinging charge of pre-meditated intent to harm that state laws would allow. They could, and most likely would, grandstand in front of a jury that Edwards' one-man wrecking rage was disturbingly not rage at all, but his ill intentions were cold, calculated and pre-meditated ... the definition of a criminal mind.

So, why isn't it so easy?

Maybe it is because the accused is a champion on and off the track, a real upstanding citizen in the community in which he performs his trade. Maybe it is because the defense pleas self-defense, supported by a low-light reel of countless run-ins with the plaintiff.

The main reason this is not an open and shut case is because it is not a case played out in a court of law, but settled on a sport's court of justice. See, in sports, when players feel wronged, they become judge, jury and executioner.

The rules are as simple as Hammurabi's Code: "Eye for an Eye, Tooth for a Tooth."

In baseball, you throw at my best player, expect one of your players to get dinged. In basketball, you aggressively foul my top player, expect flagrant fouls in return. In hockey, you cheap shot my top scorer, penalty minutes are about to pile up. Sometimes the counter punch is harder than the initial assault ... but there is always a counter punch. Payback is a bitch.

Bottom line here is that those in the NASCAR industry saw this coming. It was only a matter of when, and when came with three laps to go at Atlanta.

Keselowski has charged into the NASCAR spotlight with a brash style that is considered by many in the garage as disregard and disrespect for fellow competitors. Aggressive is what Edwards is. Brash is what Keselowski has been. There is a difference.

In the past 18 months there is a body of work from the young Michigan native. And the scowls of discontent have continued to grow both in depth and in numbers.

Keselowski is undeniably one of the most talented young drivers today. Our sport needs him. He deserves the opportunity he received with Roger Penske and he will reward Mr. Penske's organization for years to come.

But Denny Hamlin's retaliation at Homestead was a simple tap on the shoulder, as if to say, "Um, excuse me, Mr. Keselowski ... Yes, we are not happy with your tactics and would appreciate it if you would consider reciprocal respect amongst your peers. Thank you."

Carl's was more direct: "Cut it out."

When I saw Brad get airborne and head towards the catchfence, I was horrified, for Brad, for the fans and for the sport. The outcome could have been much worse. We dodged a bullet. But let's face fact: If Brad doesn't get airborne and spins harmlessly into the infield grass, this entire episode is laughable. Cars getting upside down, slamming driver first into the wall and nearly climbing into the grandstands is a serious matter. Self-policing ends when it involves others, and that's one of the issues I had with this public shootout in the town square.

Too many innocent bystanders are struck by stray bullets. The wreck caused a green-white-checkered restart that ruined great runs for guys like Clint Bowyer, Martin Truex Jr. and Mark Martin. Those guys deserved better finishes.

And perhaps the two that paid the highest price were Brad and Carl themselves. Brad was robbed of a top-five finish and Carl may have stained his lily-white reputation.

Our only hope is that this particular civil war is behind us so we can move on to Bristol, a track whose reputation was built on tempers, paybacks and self-policing.

Ah. And we're only four weeks into the season!

Ty Norris is vice president and general manager of Michael Waltrip Racing. He has worked within the NASCAR industry with MWR, Speedway Motorsports Inc., Dale Earnhardt Inc. and RJ Reynolds since 1990. He will share his opinions each Thursday on NASCAR.COM.