Tony Stewart runs over and kills another driver.

[Phishfan]

First of all, it's not first degree murder.   It's not pre-meditated.  It would be manslaughter, if anything.

But even then, I'm not defending Stewart on a moral level; just a legal one.  He has to be given all benefit of the doubt, considering the victim willing ran onto an active racetrack.  What legal ground could you possibly have to prosecute?

The fact that you said Tony saw him from across the track and then sped up and then purposely hit him is the very definition of pre-meditation. Tony didn't have to leave the house with this in mind. There is no time limit on how far in advance someone has to plan something.

Now if your argument is that it is hard to prove Tony willingly did any of this, I would say that is correct. I don't think that comes across very clear if that is your point though. Your argument seems to be that the victim's actions are the exclusion of any legal wrongdoing which I don't think is a valid argument.

[Dave Gray]

The fact that you said Tony saw him from across the track and then sped up and then purposely hit him is the very definition of pre-meditation. Tony didn't have to leave the house with this in mind. There is no time limit on how far in advance someone has to plan something.

I don't believe that to be true, but I think that's a different conversation.

Now if your argument is that it is hard to prove Tony willingly did any of this, I would say that is correct. I don't think that comes across very clear if that is your point though. Your argument seems to be that the victim's actions are the exclusion of any legal wrongdoing which I don't think is a valid argument.

...not just hard to prove -- impossible to prove unless he said into his microphone that he's going to try and hit the guy.  So impossible to prove that it's not even worthy of trying.

And yeah, I'm kinda saying that if you walk into oncoming traffic on a racetrack, you're kinda waiving your legal rights to safety from cars.  At that point, the other driver's are not responsible for your safety.  And unless Tony just comes out and says "yeah, I killed that kid on purpose", I don't think it's even worth discussing, from a legal perspective.

[CF DolFan]

While not exactly on topic this reminds me of a local thing we had happen.

We used to have a bus races amongst police officers during "kids and cops night" at the New Smyrna racetrack. Our sheriff ran into another sheriff and knocked him out of his bus and then ran him over ... subsequently killing him. 

In the 70s I also remember a driver (Steve Rumbough)  running over another driver (Gary English) in the pitts of New Smyrna and then driving through the back gate to get away from angry people. English broke his pelvis (I think) as well as other injuries but I don't think charges were ever filed because it happened on a race track.  Again ... it was the 70s.

With all the crazy stuff that happens there it's hard to believe nice guy Mark Martin comes from there .. LOL

[Tenshot13]

The big controversy I hear is that Stewart gases it when the guy reached instead of swerving away. I've been lead to believe that these sprint cars drive like a jet ski and you have to gas it to turn, otherwise he would have hit the guy head on and not with his back tire when he drifted the sprint car.  Other than extreme media personalities like Nancy Grace who know nothing about racing, I'm not hearing anyone call for Stewart's head.

[MyGodWearsAHoodie]

I don't believe that to be true, but I think that's a different conversation.

Believe what you want but you would be wrong.

And unless Tony just comes out and says "yeah, I killed that kid on purpose", I don't think it's even worth discussing, from a legal perspective.

Actually you can determine intent from conduct.

If Tony failed to do what a reasonably prudent person would do upon noticing a person on the race track than he is guilty of negligent homicide.

If his action were reckless than he is guilty of manslaughter.

If his action were represented a wanton disregard for someone else safety than it is murder.

If he was purposefully aiming at Ward it is first degree murder.

Based on the facts as I know them he is either not guilty of criminal conduct or guilty of negligent homicide.  But your legal analysis is seriously flawed. 

[Dave Gray]

I just don't see how you could ever consider that pre-meditated.   Even if he meant to do it....if that's the case, when is a murder not pre-meditated?

Regardless of what his intentions are, you can't be in a position to ever know.  All you can do is speculate. 

[Spider-Dan]

The problem with determining his intent from conduct is that it would be extremely difficult to determine exactly what his conduct was, especially on a track like that.

Let us say, for the sake of argument, that the revved engine on the tape is conclusively proven to be Stewart's (which is no small feat to prove).  Stewart could very well say that, given that Ward was already running on the track, he tried to dart away at the last second to keep Ward from running even further onto the track in pursuit.

Part of the argument against Stewart rests on the idea that he is an expert with perfect control of his vehicle, and intentionally sideswiped this guy that he could have easily avoided.  But if Stewart was enraged and meant to run him over, why would he have fishtailed into him instead of just plowing him over?  Either he has total control, or he doesn't.

[Cathal]

Maybe he intended to fishtail into him to make it look like he was trying to avoid him! Clever Tony Stewart.

[MyGodWearsAHoodie]

I just don't see how you could ever consider that pre-meditated.   Even if he meant to do it....if that's the case, when is a murder not pre-meditated?

There are plenty of times when murder is not premeditated. You walk in on your wife having sex with another man pull out your gun and shoot them, unless you had time to pause and think about things that is murder but not premeditated.  Rob some one and accidentally shoot him.  That is murder, specifically felony murder, but not premeditated murder.  If the driver instance intended to strike the victim and cause him great bodily harm but did not intent do kill him, then his conduct would be murder but not premeditated murder.

 

Regardless of what his intentions are, you can't be in a position to ever know.  All you can do is speculate. 

If that was the case nobody could ever be convicted of a crime that had an intent element.  We can judge intent by conduct. 

In this specific case the conduct does not suggest murder.  But that doesn't mean we can't use conduct to determine intent. 

[EKnight]

Stewart not to be charged in the death. Toxicology reports indicating Ward was high when we meandered into oncoming cars. -EK

[Dave Gray]

^ High on what?

[EKnight]

Marijuana. Apparently enough to impair his rational judgement. -EK

[Sunstroke]

I am 100% confident that I have smoked more pot than anyone on this board over the past 38 years, and I cannot fathom marijuana alone, no matter how much you smoked, causing a person to wander out onto a race track.

[EKnight]

Having never smoked anything in my life, I have no idea. Just going off what CBS sports radio broadcasted. -EK

[Sunstroke]

I could see smoking enough to impair your judgement enough to hit on a fat chick at the bar, but wander out onto a race track? That sounds like someone either has no clue what they're talking about, or they're pushing a severe anti-marijuana agenda.