NASCAR maintains indefinite suspension on Busch

David Higdon, NASCAR's vice president of integrated marketing communications, explained the decision as a guest on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio's "Morning Drive" program with Mike Bagley and Pete Pistone. Higdon also shed light on the decision-making process that first led NASCAR to suspend Busch on Feb. 20, the day a Delaware family court commissioner's detailed findings were released but before a decision had been made on whether or not criminal charges would be brought.
 
"A couple things: One is our actions were based on what we heard from the commissioner in the family court of the state of Delaware," Higdon told SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. "At the time, we knew that there was a chance that the attorney general could go one way or the other, and our terms and conditions made it very clear that he needed to understand that additional findings in criminal court may affect his eligibility for reinstatement.
 
"As the Department of Justice was very clear in their statement, they determined that admissible evidence and available witnesses would likely be inefficient to meet the burden of establishing beyond a reasonable doubt that he committed a crime. So they are very clear on that, and just as the commissioner in the family court was very clear that they were satisfied with the evidence that was presented at the trial that there was a case here, so their language was very clear. I think the language from the Department of Justice and the attorney general was there as well. I know it's confusing, and it's hard and I know you guys have been very patient and helping people understand this."
 
Higdon said the no-contact order that Kent County (Del.) family court commissioner David Jones granted to Busch's ex-girlfriend, Patricia Driscoll, on Feb. 16 did not provide sufficient detail for the sanctioning body to take action. When the civil disposition detailing Jones' findings was released on Friday before the Daytona 500, the season-opening NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race, Higdon said NASCAR officials were forced to act swiftly.
 
"Certainly, we were called to task for waiting like we did," Higdon said. "We utilized the patience that was necessary to gather the appropriate information and then, unfortunately, the timing hit us during the Daytona 500 where Kurt received a court order from the family court of the state of Delaware with the PFA (protection from abuse order) that, as you know, was a 25-page document that we simply couldn't ignore. It was a very clear case that was made by that court. We had to make a decision. It was unanimous among those who were involved in that decision, and not only was that decision handed down and shared with Kurt and his team, but we expedited an appeal for him as well."
 
The penalties for Busch were upheld in two appeals heard Feb. 21. The 36-year-old driver applied for reinstatement Feb. 27, agreeing to the terms and conditions set forth by NASCAR after consultation with an outside expert.

RELATED: NASCAR statement on Kurt Busch
 
Higdon said Busch indicated to officials Thursday that he intended to continue with the reinstatement process, which Higdon said was aided by Thursday's decision by the Delaware Department of Justice, though no specific timetable exists.
 
"The impact of yesterday certainly will factor in since the elimination of the possibility of criminal charges certainly is something that is removing a significant impediment to his reinstatement," Higdon said, "so we look forward to him completing the conditions and being able to evaluate and be ready to return to our sport."
 
Higdon said NASCAR regularly evaluates all of its rules, including those concerning the personal conduct of its members. While he said hearing negative feedback regarding Busch's case was difficult, Higdon said the sanctioning body will continue to set a high standard for conduct while dealing with issues that crop up on a case-by-case basis.
 
"The fact of the matter is, we feel like our track record -- which really dates back 50 years in the rules we have in place -- have been very strong and very solid in terms of establishing that our expectations from our members are very high," Higdon said. "I think our drivers respect that, our teams respect that, our partners respect that … they realize that this is a sport that has always placed a premium on having people who are going to be positive and a reflective part of our sport.
 
"Certainly we know that we have a situation here that has been very difficult to handle and has been very hard for myself and others in this organization to hear some broad strokes against NASCAR in a way that's just absolutely not true. We have a zero-tolerance level here and people now know that, and at the same time, we're going to let the facts dictate what our decisions are going to be and not something that we hear one day that changes the next."

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