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3 For the Record Extra 1 (1994)

handle is hein.blasports/frecext0003 and id is 1 raw text is: For The Record N se ..*.* * ** *0 *** ** 1103 West Wiscnsin Avenue Sports Law Milwaukee, WI 53233 9 _ Institute MAROUETTE UNIVERSITY LAW SCHOOL For More Information, Call (414) 288-5815 A Monthly Update Service About Current Topics In Sports Law and Sports Business VOL. 3 NO. 2 JUNE 1994 ISSUE 22 The Legal Aspects of the Tonya Harding Figure Skating Eligibility Controversy BY MARTIN J. GREENBERG, NSLI Director and JAMES T. GRAY, NSLI Assistant Director On January 6, 1994, United States figure skater Nancy Kerrigan was assaulted and suffered injuries to her right leg at a practice sessions prior to the National Women's Figure Skating Championships in Detroit. Government authorities conducting the criminal investigation concluded that associates of rival United States figure skater Tonya Harding were involved in the Kerrigan attack. Since the attack and their subsequent arrest, Harding's ex-husband Jeff Gillooly and Harding bodyguard Shawn Eckhardt have stated that they acted to harm Kerrigan with Harding's knowledge and involvement. In response to these allegations, Harding had denied any accusation which implicated her in the Kerrigan attack. However, Harding had publicly admitted she knew who was involved in the Kerrigan attack but only after the assault had occurred. In response to Harding's alleged involvement in the Kerrigan attack, the United States Figure Skating Association (USFSA) convened its Hearing Panel. According to the USFSA Constitution and Bylaws, the Hearing Panel can consider eligibility disputes. The Hearing Panel also shall make written findings of fact which shall be final and make a written decision which shall include grounds for the decision. The probable basis for establishing that Harding violated the USFSA code of conduct was to weigh the credibility of Gillooly and Eckhardt, who maintained that Harding had knowledge of the Kerrigan attack plan, against Harding's denial of their testimony. The Hearing Panel also would have probably reviewed the circumstances of Harding's failure to advise authorities of the Kerrigan attack after knowledge came to her. On February 5, 1994, the Hearing Panel determined that reasonable grounds exist to believe that Tonya Harding violated the USFSA Code of Ethics. In addition, the Hearing Panel also found that reasonable grounds existed to believe that Harding committed an act to carry out a plan and/or was involved in a plan to injure Nancy Kerrigan or knew about a plan to injure Kerrigan and either failed to oppose it, failed to report it, or made false statements about her knowledge concerning it.

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