Kurt Busch Under Investigation for Alleged Domestic Assault
The Dover (Delaware) Police Department decided not to press charges against Kurt Busch following its investigation into domestic violence allegations.
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Busch Won't Be Charged for Incident
Thursday, March 5
Jeff Gluck of USA Today reported that Busch won't be charged in the investigation into allegations of domestic violence, due to insufficient evidence:
Busch Suspended Indefinitely
Friday, Feb. 20
NASCAR announced that Busch has been suspended indefinitely, per NASCAR.com's Zack Albert:
"Given the serious nature of the findings and conclusions made by the Commissioner of the Family Court of the State of Delaware, NASCAR has indefinitely suspended driver Kurt Busch, effective immediately. He will not be allowed to race nor participate in any NASCAR activities until further notice.
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Kurt Busch and his Stewart-Haas Racing team are fully aware of our position and why this decision was made. We will continue to respect the process and timetable of the authorities involved.
Court Finds Busch Smashed Girlfriend's Head Against Motorhome Wall
Friday, Feb. 20
Bob Pockrass of ESPN.com reported the findings of the Kent County family court commissioner on Friday:
"Kurt Busch smashed his ex-girlfriend Patricia Driscoll's head against his motorhome wall Sept. 26 at Dover International Speedway, according to the conclusions of a Kent County (Del.) family court commissioner who granted Driscoll's request for a protective order Monday.
The Court finds by a preponderance of the evidence that, on September 26, 2014, Respondent [Busch] committed an act of domestic violence against Petitioner [Driscoll] by manually strangling her by placing his left hand on her throat, while placing his right hand on her chin and face and smashing her head into the wall of his motor home," Commissioner David Jones wrote in his findings and conclusions.
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Busch Will Appeal Court Order to Stay Away from Ex-Girlfriend, NASCAR Issues Statement
Monday, Feb. 16
"Carolyn McNeice said the order from the family court was issued Monday and that supplemental details and the opinion supporting Commissioner David Jones's order would be released Friday.
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McNeice also stated in an email, "We are pleased that the court ruled in our favor. Ms. Driscoll can now know that she will not receive any unwanted communications from Mr. Busch and feel that she is safe after nearly 5 months."
However, Gluck revealed that Busch will appeal the court's decision, per his attorney, Rusty Hardin.
NASCAR issued a statement following the developments, via Dave Moody of GodfatherMotorsports.com:
"NASCAR has been closely following the civil proceedings in Kent County (Del.) Family Court regarding driver Kurt Busch and therefore is aware of the court order issued today,” said the statement. “We now await the full findings of the Commissioner and any actions by the Attorney General of Delaware related to the allegations against Busch.
As we stated earlier, NASCAR fully recognizes the serious nature of this specific situation and the broader issue of domestic violence. We will continue to gather information and monitor this situation very closely, and we expect our members to conduct themselves properly.
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Busch's Ex Denies Perjury Accusations
Thursday, Feb. 5
Jeff Owens of Sporting News reported Driscoll denies Wednesday's perjury accusations:
"Kurt Busch ex-girlfriend Patricia Driscoll denies lying in court and says Busch and his attorneys have engaged in a smear campaign to detract from the domestic-abuse allegations against him.
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Jon Offredo of The News Journal previously reported on Busch's attorney's closing statements from his domestic abuse trial, which alleged perjury:
"Kurt Busch's ex-girlfriend repeatedly lied on the stand – making up stories about how he allegedly abused her – so she could destroy the NASCAR driver's reputation, his attorneys argued in their closing statements.
"We respectfully request that the Court not reward her perjury and scorched-earth approach of destruction by granting her a protective order," his attorney Rusty Hardin wrote in his closing arguments. "There is only one person in this duo that needs protection, and it is not Patricia Driscoll – it is Kurt Busch.
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Busch Denies Charges During Hearing
Tuesday, Jan. 13
Kurt Busch denied the allegations against him during Tuesday's court proceedings, via Jon Offredo of The News Journal:
"Standing toe-to-toe in the courtroom at Kent County Family Court, Hardin asked Busch if he "pushed her head against the wall" that night.
"No, I did not," Busch responded calmly.
"Did you slam her head against the wall?" Hardin then asked.
"No sir," Busch again responded.
"Did you slam her head against the wall three times?" his attorney asked, repeating Driscoll's allegation.
"No, I did not," Busch said.
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Busch was also one of multiple people who testified about his accuser:
"Several people testified during the hearing, including Busch, that Driscoll claimed she was a trained assassin who had killed people, including drug lords. While on the stand, Busch said Driscoll claimed that Jessica Chastain's character in the movie 'Zero Dark Thirty' was partly based on her and other females working in counterintelligence and defense.
When Hardin asked how he'd fare in a physical confrontation, Busch said he knew she could overpower him.
"I knew she could take me down at any moment," Busch said.
Asked why, he said, "Because she is a badass."
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The allegations against Busch were made public in early November, prompting an investigation that has just concluded. Charges have yet to be filed against the NASCAR driver.
Busch Investigation Concludes
Tuesday, Jan. 6
The Associated Press reports that the investigation into domestic assault allegations against Busch has ended:
"The police investigation into allegations that NASCAR driver Kurt Busch assaulted his ex-girlfriend has been finished and forwarded to Delaware state prosecutors to decide whether charges will be filed.
Cpl. Mark Hoffman with the Dover Police Department said Tuesday that the agency's investigation into the allegations was finished, but he declined to say whether investigators were recommending that Busch be charged. He also declined to release the report.
Hoffman says the Delaware Attorney General's Office will decide whether to charge Busch. A spokesman for the office didn't immediately respond to a request about timing.
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Busch Called to Stand to Testify
Wednesday, Dec. 17
The Associated Press (via ESPN) reported on the legal proceedings against Kurt Busch as the NASCAR driver's ex-girlfriend has called him to testify:
"The attorney for Kurt Busch's ex-girlfriend has called the NASCAR driver to the stand to testify in a hearing in which the woman is seeking a court order directing him to stay away from her.
Patricia Driscoll's attorney called Busch to testify just before a lunch break in Wednesday's hearing. It was not immediately clear whether Busch would testify or cite his Fifth Amendment right to keep his silence.
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Jon Offredo of The News Journal has more on what Busch said during his testimony:
"Busch testified that he had been sleeping the night of Sept. 26 when Driscoll arrived at his motorhome with her then-nine-year-old son, Houston. He says he told her repeatedly to leave, but she kept bringing her son in from another room, saying that Busch needed to tell the boy that the relationship between Busch and Driscoll was over.
Busch says Driscoll came to his motorhome uninvited and unannounced.
Busch says while the two were in his bedroom, he again asked her to leave, for what he said was the fifth time. He says he cupped her cheeks in his hands, looked her in the eye and said, "you need to leave." He says he was defusing the situation.
Busch said he was naked during the entire encounter.
"It needs to be described because of the fabrication we listened to yesterday," he said of the details he shared in court.
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Busch's Ex Seeks No-Contact Order
Tuesday, Dec. 16
The Associated Press reported on the latest in the legal proceedings against Kurt Busch:
"A Delaware family court commissioner is set to hear arguments on a request from Kurt Busch's ex-girlfriend for an order directing the NASCAR driver to stay away from her following an alleged assault at Dover International Speedway in September.
(...)
Driscoll has filed court documents asking that a judge order Busch to stay away from her and not contact her. She also is asking that Busch undergo a psychiatric evaluation and be evaluated by a certified domestic violence treatment agency.
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Busch Meets with Investigators
Wednesday, Nov. 19
Randall Chase of The Associated Press has the latest on Busch:
"NASCAR driver Kurt Busch has met with Delaware police investigating an allegation by his ex-girlfriend that he assaulted her.
Police say Busch and his attorneys met with investigators Tuesday afternoon. An attorney for Busch says he was cooperative and continues to deny the allegations by 36-year-old Patricia Driscoll.
Police spokesman Mark Hoffman says the investigation is continuing and that no decision on whether to file charges has been made.
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Busch's Ex-Girlfriend Claims Driver Was in Emotional Distress in Delaware
Saturday, Nov. 8
Jenna Fryer of The Associated Press provides new details from Patricia Driscoll's attorney:
"Kurt Busch's ex-girlfriend believed the NASCAR driver was in emotional distress when she drove to a Delaware race track to visit him, even though they had broken up earlier that week, an attorney for Patricia Driscoll said Saturday.
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Kurt Busch Investigated for Domestic Assault Allegations
Friday, Nov. 7
NASCAR driver Kurt Busch is being investigated for allegations of domestic assault, according to a statement released by the Dover Police Department in Dover, Delaware:
"The Dover Police Department can confirm that an investigation is being conducted based on an allegation of domestic assault that is alleged to have occurred in the City of Dover involving Mr. Busch. These allegations were brought to the Dover Police Department on Wednesday, November 5th at 2:00PM. At this time, the department is still investigating the victim’s claims and will not have any further comment on this matter in order to preserve the integrity of the case.
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Busch has not been charged.
Randall Chase of The Associated Press provided more detail on the incident:
"The documents, filed Wednesday, say Busch was despondent the night of Sept. 26 after his poor performance at the qualifying race.
"He was verbally abusive to her and said he wished he had a gun so that he could kill himself," the documents say.
Driscoll said Busch, 36, called her names and accused her of "having spies everywhere and having a camera on the bus to watch him." He then jumped up, grabbed her face and smashed her head three times against the wall next to the bed, the documents say.
Driscoll says she pushed Busch away and ran from the bedroom, going to a nearby bus to put an ice pack on her head and neck. She said the incident caused her severe pain, difficulty breathing and bruising on her neck.
A hearing in the case is scheduled for Dec. 2.
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The driver's lawyer, Rusty Hardin, has issued a statement on the investigation:
NASCAR chief communications officer Brett Jewkes released a statement about the allegations facing Busch and where things stand at the moment, via NASCAR's official Twitter account:
Busch's team, Stewart-Haas Racing, has also issued a statement on the matter, via Jim Utter of The Charlotte Observer:
Patricia Driscoll, Busch's ex-girlfriend, says the alleged incident happened in his motorhome at a race track, per ESPN.com.
The NASCAR star has had his issues off the track before. Per the same ESPN report, Busch was suspended for one weekend of racing in 2012 after threatening to hit a reporter. Earlier that year, in a separate incident, he was fined $50,000 following an altercation with crew members for Ryan Newman.
Busch is slated to take part in this weekend's Quicken Loans Race For Heroes 500 NASCAR race at Phoenix International Speedway. He's currently 14th in the points standings and was eliminated from the Sprint Cup Chase on September 28.
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