NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has tapped former New Jersey Attorney General Peter C. Harvey to hear the appeal of Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson’s six-game suspension.
The NFL is seeking a tougher penalty under the league’s personal conduct policy following Disciplinary Officer Sue L. Robinson’s decision on Monday. Under the collective bargaining agreement, Goodell had the option of reviewing the appeal himself or appointing a designee.
A source told ESPN’s Jake Trotter that the NFL is asking for an indefinite suspension that would be a minimum of one year (as it had previously requested), a monetary fine (which Watson did not collect on Robinson) and the treatment that the star quarterback has to do. suffer.
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Harvey now works as a partner at the Paterson Belknap firm in New York. He has also served as a federal prosecutor and is currently a member of the NFL’s Diversity Advisory Committee, which assesses diversity in the league.
Noting his qualifications, the league said Harvey “has extensive experience in criminal law, including domestic violence and sexual assault, and has advised the NFL and other professional leagues on the development and implementation of employment policies, including the NFL’s personal conduct policy.”
Harvey has also been Goodell’s appointee in other arbitrations.
Watson has been accused of sexual assault and other inappropriate conduct during massage sessions in civil lawsuits filed by 25 women. The encounters alleged in the lawsuits took place from March 2020 to March 2021, while Watson was a member of the Houston Texans.
In issuing the six-game suspension, Robinson wrote that “the NFL carried its burden of proving by a preponderance of the evidence that Mr. Watson engaged in sexual assault (as defined by the NFL) against the four therapists identified in the Report.”
While relying on precedent, Robinson attempted to differentiate between violent and non-violent sexual conduct. Robinson concluded that Watson’s conduct “does not fall into the category of violent conduct that would require the minimum six-game suspension” that the league had established as “by far the most commonly imposed discipline for domestic or gender-based violence and sexual acts”.
The Browns traded for Watson in March, sending three first-round picks to the Texans. Cleveland gave Watson a new five-year contract that was the richest deal in NFL history for any player.
ESPN’s Jake Trotter and The Associated Press contributed to this report.