Nice post, you said it better than I did. It's interesting to see all the reactions from people who don't know racing completely blaming Ward for this.
Based on what Sly and TehChad said, this does sound (as maxiep suggested) like Stewart was at least guilty of manslaughter or reckless endangerment. Murder would probably be hard to charge, if you need to prove intent.
This is from a race yesterday right up the road from where this incident took place. [video=youtube;Nd5O24m5iuo]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nd5O24m5iuo&feature=youtu.be[/video]
I watch real racing... not a bunch of rednecks making a bunch of left turns. In motorcycle racing you get the fuck off the track when you go down because you are likely to get run over and killed. It isn't common for riders to get run over, but it happens. I can't even imagine someone charging onto the track. Seems completely reckless and foolhardy. With that said, I don't understand why there isn't more discussion from the media about this being deliberate. It's the fans who are saying he should be in cuffs right now.
cant i think they are both stupid? dude shouldnt have agressively ran into traffic other dude shouldnt have revved up his engine to intimidate him im sure it wasnt intentional to kill the guy, buy like i said before, the car probably just got away from him after pushing it too far, so he should be held liable in any event, there is a giant civil suit coming im sure
I'm not convinced he deliberately hit the guy. The car before him had to swerve to get out of the way. It's not like he was far away from all the other cars.
Hard for me to believe Stewart didn't think he was gong to at least come close to hitting other driver by giving the car gas. Stewart is an expert when it comes to controlling a race car. For me it appears Stewart was puffing up his chest back using his car and trying to get closer to the other driver as the other driver came at him. Any event I'm pretty sure there will be criminal charges filed against Stewart. How serious will probably depend on how experts interpret the video and what other evidence they can gather. Prosecution will have their hands full as Stewart can afford the best legal defense team. So best the state make sure they know what they got and gather as much evidence as possible before bringing charges.
Stewart has won the NASCAR championship 3 times. He is truly one of best drivers in the world. He has amazing skill and has done things never attempted by other drivers including multiple times racing in the Indy 500 and Coca Cola 600 in the same fucking day. He is one an elite driver. But he is also known for having a fiery temper. Multiple instances of confrontations and fights with other drivers. He's been out of his car and thrown his helmet at cars before. I don't think he intended to kill the guy but he intended to scare the shit out of him. I know people like Nate don't respect Nascar but these guys do some amazing shit with their cars. Huge skill required. Stewart was racing against weekend warriors. He should have been far away from that wreck. He's the professional, he could have prevented that.
Any of you ever play speed bump slalom on the freeway? Try changing lanes on the freeway without hitting the little bumps. Best I've gotten up to is 80mph when I had my Lexus.
The kid is standing in the middle of the track There's not a lot to discuss And considering there was a car in front of Stewart, his vision was probably blocked and didn't see the guy in the middle of the track until the last moment Sad ending, but the kid did it to himself
http://www.foxsports.com/nascar/sto...ges-will-be-filed-against-tony-stewart-081014 Sheriff says no criminal charges will be filed against Tony Stewart In a press conference shortly after 3 p.m. ET Sunday, Ontario County (N.Y.) Sheriff Phillip C. Povero said, "At this moment there are no facts or evidence that would support a criminal charge or criminal intent." The sheriff's office is examining videos from fans who were in attendance and also is awaiting formal autopsy results.
On Sunday, Ontario County Sheriff Philip Povero said criminal charges have not been ruled out but that investigators also don't have any evidence at this point in the investigation to support criminal intent... Getting out of a wrecked car to confront another driver is common in almost every series. Wrecked race cars can rarely be driven off the track, and the driver has to get out to find his way back to either the pits or the garage. It creates ample opportunity for angry confrontations. The confrontations are part of the sport's culture: Fans love it and cheer wildly from the stands. They love the bumping, the banging and the bickering. The site of Saturday night's crash is the same track where Stewart was involved in a July 2013 accident that seriously injured a 19-year-old driver. He later took responsibility for his car making contact with another and triggering the 15-car accident that left Alysha Ruggles with a compression fracture in her back. http://www.oregonlive.com/today/index.ssf/2014/08/tony_stewart_sought_for_more_q.html#incart_m-rpt-1
http://www.sportingnews.com/nascar/...-of-kevin-ward-investigation-criminal-charges Less than 24 hours into its investigation into a fatal accident in which Tony Stewart hit racecar driver Kevin Ward Jr. as Ward approached Stewart's car on foot, the Ontario County (N.Y.) sheriff said initial findings do not show criminal intent. The investigation, though, is continuing into the death of the 20-year-old Ward, who was declared dead on arrival at Thompson Hospital 45 minutes after the accident Saturday night in the Empire Super Sprints event at Canandaigua Motorsports Park. After a wreck with Stewart, Ward climbed out of his car, walked out onto the track and approached Stewart's car, which hit him under caution. “There are no criminal charges pending at this time,” Sheriff Philip Povero said at a news conference broadcast on ESPNews. “We have reviewed the investigation to this point with the Ontario County district attorney. “As we speak at this time, there is no evidence in hand or no facts that would support a criminal charge or support criminal intent on the part of anybody.” Povero said the investigation is ongoing and will focus on the banked dirt surface, which was slick and muddy, as well as the color of Ward’s firesuit and what he called dim lighting in the area in Turns 1 and 2 of the track.
I'm not real familiar with auto racing and I understand the idea of assumption of risk, but I will be shocked if no criminal charges are brought. I don't think what the sheriff said automatically means no charges will be brought, as they are still gathering evidence. But I'm surprised to hear what he said vs they are investigating the situation. Maybe charges won't be brought, but I don't get that at all given what I saw on the video.
Beyond a reasonable doubt is the standard of proof. There is plenty of reasonable doubt. You have proof in this thread by some people saying it was the kid's fault for being on the track where he was. Even the cops are saying it was dark where he got hit and he was wearing a dark suit.
