Hapless Bills Fan Posted September 3, 2015 Share Posted September 3, 2015 Which wasn't illegal at the time. Incorrect, in Alabama "Spice" was made illegal by emergency order in October 2011. If you are the Bills, do you want him playing vs the Colts and risk having to serve his suspension later in the season? Or do you figure we need him the most now? If I'm Dareus lawyer and/or agent, I'm certainly calling my client and asking if he wants to file an appeal in court. Once you get it in court, there's always the chance it will go away completely. But I think in this case, it's up to Dareus, I don't think the Bills are going to get legally involved in a non-football-related player issue even if not having that player will impact their football Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
26CornerBlitz Posted September 3, 2015 Share Posted September 3, 2015 i thought his was for the synthetic marijuana? You're not allowed to spice it up in the NFL. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MDH Posted September 3, 2015 Share Posted September 3, 2015 It is - he will have an uphill battle to claim he was not aware of a potential penalty. He should take the penalty and move on. He should file an appeal and then drop the appeal during the week that the Bills play the Jags effectively picking the game he wants to miss. I don't actually know if he could do this but I like the idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LB3 Posted September 3, 2015 Share Posted September 3, 2015 Is there a good one in Buffalo? Mongolian Buffet. Don't know if it's any good though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luxy312 Posted September 3, 2015 Share Posted September 3, 2015 Dareus described it as a "banned substance". The NFL, as always, did not say what the subtance was. Says right in your 2 references. Still sidestepping the point. It doesn't matter whether the substance is legal or illegal. All that matters is whether it's on the list of banned substances by they NFLPA. There have been players in the past with ADD that got legal prescriptions from their doctors for Adderall to treat it. The problem there is that any type of amphetamine is on the list. I'll say again that legal or illegal is not relevant to the discussion. Hopeful gets that (thanks!). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. WEO Posted September 3, 2015 Share Posted September 3, 2015 Still sidestepping the point. It doesn't matter whether the substance is legal or illegal. All that matters is whether it's on the list of banned substances by they NFLPA. There have been players in the past with ADD that got legal prescriptions from their doctors for Adderall to treat it. The problem there is that any type of amphetamine is on the list. I'll say again that legal or illegal is not relevant to the discussion. Hopeful gets that (thanks!). So you are saying if he was found with spice in Buffalo he would still have been suspended? Not suspended? I say if he wasn't arrested, he wouldn't be suspended. So he was essentially suspended for the felony arrest/charge. He didn't dispute or fight his suspension. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maddog69 Posted September 3, 2015 Share Posted September 3, 2015 every NFL suspension should be contested in court from now on. The NFL legal team just can't win. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DC Tom Posted September 3, 2015 Share Posted September 3, 2015 The article also notes that "found him to be in possession of synthetic marijuana and drug paraphernalia, both Class C felonies that carry a minimum one-year jail term had he been indicted and found guilty at trial" and "Last May, Dareus was arrested for felony possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia" which sounds to me like it's illegal But your point is well taken that suspension correlates to the NFL's banned substances, which may or may not be illegal The NFL Drug Policy tests specifically for one metabolic marker of THC (9-THC-carboxylic acid). Spice has different metabolites that aren't tested for. So if he were suspended for synthetic marijuana use...yeah, that would constitute "no prior notice." Plus...a one game suspension? There's nothing in the policy that supports that. The minimum is two games, for a third offense with marijuana. So yeah, Marcell...appeal. Under Berman's logic, you shouldn't have been punished at all. So you are saying if he was found with spice in Buffalo he would still have been suspended? Not suspended? I say if he wasn't arrested, he wouldn't be suspended. So he was essentially suspended for the felony arrest/charge. He didn't dispute or fight his suspension. Under the Personal Conduct Policy, he can be suspended for being arrested...but again, it's completely open-ended, and at Goodell's discretion. Under the Substance Abuse Policy, Goodell had absolutely no grounds to suspend him. "Spice" isn't covered by the policy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PolishDave Posted September 3, 2015 Share Posted September 3, 2015 He should file an appeal and then drop the appeal during the week that the Bills play the Jags effectively picking the game he wants to miss. I don't actually know if he could do this but I like the idea. Genius! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. WEO Posted September 3, 2015 Share Posted September 3, 2015 The NFL Drug Policy tests specifically for one metabolic marker of THC (9-THC-carboxylic acid). Spice has different metabolites that aren't tested for. So if he were suspended for synthetic marijuana use...yeah, that would constitute "no prior notice." Plus...a one game suspension? There's nothing in the policy that supports that. The minimum is two games, for a third offense with marijuana. So yeah, Marcell...appeal. Under Berman's logic, you shouldn't have been punished at all. Under the Personal Conduct Policy, he can be suspended for being arrested...but again, it's completely open-ended, and at Goodell's discretion. Under the Substance Abuse Policy, Goodell had absolutely no grounds to suspend him. "Spice" isn't covered by the policy. That's in effect what he was suspended for. Dareus didn't dispute this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DC Tom Posted September 3, 2015 Share Posted September 3, 2015 That's in effect what he was suspended for. Dareus didn't dispute this. Except that every article I've seen says he was suspended for substance abuse. Unfortunately, I can't find any actual statement by Goodell to confirm it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KOKBILLS Posted September 3, 2015 Share Posted September 3, 2015 #freemarcell #rogue Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rsxfirefighter Posted September 3, 2015 Share Posted September 3, 2015 That's in effect what he was suspended for. Dareus didn't dispute this. I agree, this wasnt a substance abuse issue as it was a direct correlation to his being arrested for possession. Not for testing positive. So basically the question is, does "Personal Conduct Policy" explicitly state that you could be suspended for being arrested, but not prosecuted/found guilty (since they pleaded out). And if so, does it properly document this type of incident as a suspend able offense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillsFan-4-Ever Posted September 3, 2015 Share Posted September 3, 2015 i thought his was for the synthetic marijuana? one lead to the other Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rsxfirefighter Posted September 3, 2015 Share Posted September 3, 2015 I agree, this wasnt a substance abuse issue as it was a direct correlation to his being arrested for possession. Not for testing positive. So basically the question is, does "Personal Conduct Policy" explicitly state that you could be suspended for being arrested, but not prosecuted/found guilty (since they pleaded out). And if so, does it properly document this type of incident as a suspend able offense. well..never mind...it was the Substance Abuse policy..straight from his mouth: "Last year, I made a mistake involving possession of a banned substance," Dareus said in a statement. "The NFL's discipline for this conduct is part of the drug policy, and I apologize to my family, my teammates, the entire Bills organization and Bills fans that I will miss one game as a result of my mistake. I will work intensely that week and will be extremely happy to contribute to a win in week two for the Bills." http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000493823/article/marcell-dareus-suspended-for-first-game-of-15-season Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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