NFLPA requests restraining order to block any suspension of Ezekiel Elliott
The NFLPA filed a request for a temporary restraining order in the Eastern District of Texas, calling for the courts to block any suspension of Ezekiel Elliott upheld by NFL arbitrator Harold Henderson, according to a court filing obtained by ESPN.
The NFLPA filing calls for the court to vacate any suspension of Elliott, accusing the league's appeal process of being "fundamentally unfair" and citing new facts revealed during this week's hearing that wrapped up Thursday.
The NFL's director of investigations testified in the hearing on the appeal of Ezekiel Elliott's six-game suspension on Tuesday that she would not have recommended discipline for the Cowboys running back based on what she found, a source told ESPN.
The NFL had no comment on the filing.
If Henderson rules that Elliott remains suspended for any stretch of games, the court then can decide to stay the suspension while it reviews the matter, and Elliott could potentially be allowed to play while the case works its way through the courts.
In the filing, the NFLPA alleges "there was a League-orchestrated conspiracy by senior NFL executives .... to hide critical information -- which would completely exonerate Elliott."
"During the course of the past 13 months and culminating in the last three days of the appeal process, we have witnessed some of the most egregious violations of legal due process in connection with the NFL's investigation of Mr. Elliott," read a statement from Elliott's attorneys Frank Salzano and Scott Rosenblum. "Not only did the underlying facts not support the false allegations made against Mr. Elliott, but the process in which they were gathered and adjudicated were fundamentally unfair. Mr. Elliott looks forward to being completely vindicated and will continue to explore all other legal options to redress the reputational and monetary harm that he has suffered."
According to the filing, Kia Wright Roberts, the NFL's director of investigations, testified Tuesday that she was the only NFL employee who interviewed the running back's accuser, Tiffany Thompson, during the investigation and that she would not have recommended discipline for Elliott based on what she found.