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Ezekiel Elliott

NFL denied stay on injunction of Ezekiel Elliott suspension

A.J. Perez
USA TODAY

Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott's suspension will remain on hold as a federal judge Monday rejected the NFL's request for a stay in the case. 

Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott (21) is tackled by Denver Broncos cornerback Chris Harris during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 17, 2017, in Denver. (AP Photo/Jack Dempsey)

U.S. District Court Judge Amos Mazzant, who granted a temporary injunction on Friday, wrote in his ruling it is "well-recognized that Elliott will suffer injury if he has to serve an improper suspension while awaiting the resolution" as the courts decide his case. Elliott was suspended for six games in August after a year-long investigation over domestic violence allegations, a decision Mazzant ruled was "fundamentally unfair" last week. 

The NFL had already appealed Mazzant's issuance of a temporary injunction to the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals last week. NFL lawyers conceded that Mazzant was unlikely to issue a stay in a case where he found reason to issue an injunction, but the league gets another shot in appeals court. 

Earlier Monday, the NFL argued that Elliott’s disciplinary process was “nowhere close to fundamentally unfair” in an appeals court filing that sets the stage for a ruling that will determine if Elliott will be forced to serve his suspension this season.

In its stay petition with the appeals court, the NFL asked for a decision as early as Tuesday. If granted, the league would be allowed to enforce Elliott’s ban immediately.

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“The NFL can hardly be faulted for wanting to undertake the most thorough investigation possible before imposing punishment for the very serious allegations at issue,” Paul D. Clement, one of the NFL’s lawyers, wrote in the filing. “If anything, that only underscores the meticulous regard for fundamental fairness that the league evinced throughout this entire proceeding.”

The NFLPA argued that Mazzant should also dismiss another NFL request — a motion to dismiss the case — in a filing Monday night. 

"The court correctly found that Elliott had suffered actual and imminent injury that was traceable to the NFL," Thomas Melsheimer, one of NFLPA's attorneys, in the filing. "The court therefore also correctly found, as a matter of law, that Elliott had standing to seek redress from the court. There is no basis to change that conclusion now."

In a filing on Saturday, the NFL Players Association said Elliott "stands to lose nearly half a season in a career that is notoriously short and precarious, and competitive opportunities are irretrievable once lost." Like they did in U.S. District Court, NFLPA lawyers also claimed that the NFL's discipline process was unfair and inconsistent.

Barring a stay, Elliott's suspension would remain on hold as the 5th Circuit decides the merits of his case.

Lawyers for the NFLPA sought an injunction as part of a lawsuit filed with U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas before NFL arbitrator Harold Henderson upheld Elliott's appeal of his suspension under the league's personal conduct policy on Sept. 5.

While Elliott was not arrested or charged by prosecutors, the NFL cited statements from his former girlfriend and photos that showed injuries he allegedly inflicted in July 2016 as the basis for his suspension. The six-game ban is the baseline punishment for domestic violence under the league's personal conduct policy, which was updated after  former Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice's domestic violence case.

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