Hearings for suspended New Orleans Saints players will be Wednesday, May 30, according to lawyer
 

Attorney Peter Ginsberg, who represents New Orleans Saints linebacker Jonathan Vilma, made an appearance on ProFootballTalk's live segment Friday and told the website that the appeals for the players suspended in the bounty scandal will be held Wednesday and May 30.

Vilma is facing the longest suspension - a full season - while Saints defensive end Will Smith was suspended for four games, former Saints linebacker Scott Fujita (now with the Browns) was suspended for three games and former Saints defensive lineman Anthony Hargrove (Packers) was hit with an eight-game suspension.

According to Ginsberg, the first hearing will be about whether the appeals should be heard by by Ted Cottrell or Art Shell, jointly hired and paid by the league and the NFLPA to resolve appeals for on-field discipline, instead of NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, the man who issued the suspensions and whether the new CBA prevented the league from taking action on behavior that happened prior to Aug. 4, 2011.

Pro Football Talk reported that the second hearing will be about whether the issue should be resolved via Special Master Stephen Burbank because it involves a salary-cap violation.

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It seems pretty obvious to me that if one of their key pieces of evidence is Hargrove supposedly saying "pay me my money" while on the field, in the game, then Goodell has to be wrong on this one, and the penalties and appeal hearings should correctly be handled by the people who deal with ON THE FIELD discipline. Since it, uh, is pretty pointless to have a bounty on someone regarding stuff that happens off the field, that's not what anyone is talking about, it's ON THE FIELD. If the Saints defense got in a fight with Favre in a bar, the night before, then yeah, that'd be Goodell's call.

I too think it is an off-field issue, what the NFL is considering as 'off-field' is the actual money transfer. If they have no evidence that Vilma or any other saint actually paid money, then they have no case that this is an off the field issue and the case will be heard by Shell and Cotrell.

Anybody but Art Shell......I'd rather Pee Wee Herman heard our case.:roll:

Any significance for the date? God made it clear he would hear the coaches' appeal as soon as he could. Why the delay here? Still gathering evidence?
Does RG need Scooby and Shaggy to find more clues?

It's semantics is what it is. Roger is well aware...dirty bastard that he is. I am just hopeful that the players/lawyers/union can leverage enough pressure on the man to force him to do what he doesn't want to do, which is take his foot of the gas.

Saints grievance hearings coming on May 16, 30 | ProFootballTalk
Ginsberg, who represents Vilma, said that the two grievances filed earlier this month will be heard on May 16 and May 30.

The first hearing will focus on the argument that the new CBA prevents the NFL from taking action of any kind against players for conduct occurring before August 4, 2011, along with the question of whether the appeals should be heard not by Commissioner Roger Goodell but by Ted Cottrell or Art Shell, jointly hired and paid by the league and the NFLPA to resolve appeals for on-field discipline.

The May 30 hearing centers on the contention that, to the extent the discipline arises from extra money paid to players in violation of the salary cap, the matter should be resolved via Special Master Stephen Burbank.

Ginsberg also said that the league still has not given him or the NFLPA evidence proving that the players funded or received payments from a bounty program, and he confirmed that other legal proceedings could be utilized. The ultimate goal is to find a forum that will compel the NFL to share the evidence it has gathered regarding the question of whether the players are guilty, or innocent.

One way or the other, it’s only fair for the NFL to eventually disclose the evidence, and to provide a fair opportunity for Ginsberg and the NFLPA to scrutinize it.

So again, no evidence. Please be on time for your hearing. Appeal denied.

Can't wait for the process to proceed in front of public courts, judicial and otherwise. Relinquish the evidence, if there is any RG! :bng:

That wait will be a long one. There are so many issues that have to be dealt with... the CBA contract with mulltiple discrepanies, other issues the NFLPA has not stated, then the actual suspensions and evidence. Top that off with more appeals. It's going to take years to resolve the whole thing. The main thing the NFLPA needs to work on is re-instating players until it is resolved. Very similar to Star Caps in that the NFL may have violated State and or Federal laws in regards to contracts.