Let Justice Be Served

Embattled driver, Jeremy Mayfield will have his case heard in Federal Court. Jeremy Mayfield is the lead NASCAR driver for Mayfield Motorsports. He began his own race team in 2009 and has grown his business to nearly 20 employees.
According to Jeremy's own website,

“Mayfield Motorsports is a collaboration of a team of good people and friends of mine”. He adds that “In owning my own racing team, we are able to put people back to work, which has given everyone here a real connection to the team.”

Unfortunately, those fine people have not worked at the track for over a month. On May 1st at Richmond International speedway, Mayfield tested positive for an illegal substance. NASCAR which has the most stringent drug testing policy of any professional sport, and rightly so due to the inherent danger of driving a race car at 200mphs, suspended Jeremy on May 9th for failing the random drug screen. Mayfield requested a second sample be tested per NASCAR policy and that sample also tested positive. NASCAR has not released to the drivers a list of banned substances which might have helped Mayfield in his decision making process with regards to drug use, either legal or illegal.

The drug allegedly found in Mayfield's system have not been disclosed to the public. Mayfield contends that he tested positive for an illegal substance due to the combination of over the counter medication and Aderol, a prescribed drug for adult attention deficit disorder. The Masked Writer spoke with a knowledgeable therapist and a pharmacist, and they both stated that Aderol can show up as a methamphetamine in a person's system. Rumors speculate that Mayfield did indeed test positive for methamphetamine use.

In a press release, Mayfield stated:

"As both a team owner and a driver in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, I (Jeremy Mayfield) have immense respect for the enforcement policies NASCAR has in place. In my case, I believe that the combination of a prescribed medicine and an over-the-counter medicine reacted together and resulted in a positive drug test. My doctor and I are working with both Dr. Black and NASCAR to resolve this matter."

The soap opera like drama will soon end as Mayfield has been granted a hearing in a Federal Court. U.S. District Court Judge Graham Mullen has added Mayfield's preliminary injunction request to his work schedule. If the Judge's ruling is in favor of the driver, Mayfield might be able to compete in the Coke Zero 400 at Daytona International Speedway on July 4th. If the Judge rules against Mayfield, he will be required to meet detailed criteria prescribed by NASCAR's outside experts in order to be considered for reinstatement for competition and will most likely miss the rest of the 2009 season.

Mayfield's Mayhem

Mayfield's Mayhem-Mis-communication Could Discredit Mayfield's Expert

NASCAR Sprint Cup driver, Jeremy Mayfield, has just been pitched another curve ball in his ongoing battle to be reinstated to the Sprint Cup Series after failing a drug test drivers are required to pass in order to race.

Harvey MacFenerstein, president of Analytical Toxicology Corp., a drug-testing laboratory in San Antonio, Texas, is the man Mr. Mayfield has submitted as his expert witness in Federal Court.

The problem lies in Mr. MacFenerstein's educational background as listed in an affidavit. According to the Associated Press:

Among MacFenerstein's qualifications listed in the affidavit are: he has a bachelor of science degree in medical technology from "Mid Western State University of Texas"; he obtained a medical doctor degree in clinical pathology from CETED University in Mexico; he is certified as a medical review officer, and has membership and certification from two different clinical agencies.

But NASCAR submitted six affidavits Tuesday disputing each of his claims with regards to his expertise and educational background.

MacFenerstein fires back in communication with John Buric, an attorney for Mayfield.

MacFenerstein said he informed Buric he was not an MRO, he only attended a few classes at Midwestern State and his 1982 degree is from the Universidad Centro de Estudios Tecnologicos, which is more commonly called Universidad C.E.T.E.C. in the Dominican Republic. "I told him that I am not a medical review officer because I did not go to school for that and I am not qualified for that," MacFenerstein said. "I told them I went to C.E.T.E.C. There is no such CETED that was listed in the affidavit. I was told not to worry, it would all be deleted. When I found out it wasn't, they said 'Oh, we mustnot have deleted it'"

The mis-communication or Buric's error has enabled NASCAR to file a legitimate complaint about the affidavit filed by MacFenerstein.

NASCAR demanded that the affidavit from MacFenerstein should be tossed from the record because of the errors which disqualify the expert witness. And by all rights, NASCAR should. If the affidavit is not removed from court, it could enable Mayfield's legal team to argue that NASCAR did not follow Federal workplace guidelines that require a second independent lap to test a back up sample for drugs. NASCAR used the same lab, Ashville, Tenn.-based Aegis Sciences Corporation to test both samples.

If this were the case, why doesn't Mayfield's legal team simply find another expert witness to describe the Federal guidelines instead of relying on what appears to be a discredited witness?

As far as Harvey MacFenerstein is concerned he is done.

"No way I am getting involved in this case anymore. It's been a nightmare."

I think Jeremy Mayfield feels the same way. Perhaps if NASCAR finds in its good graces to let Jeremy race in the Sprint series again, he will make better decisions and consult an expert before ingesting drugs that could ruin his career.