[ad_1]
Dan Snyder is proving more elusive than any of the Washington Commanders’ ball carriers.
The House Committee on Oversight and Reform says it has been unable to serve the billionaire NFL team owner with a subpoena after he declined to testify at last week’s hearing on hostile workplace allegations against the club.
In response to his absence at Wednesday’s hearing on Capitol Hill, chairwoman Carolyn Maloney (Democrat-New York) announced her intention to subpoena Snyder to testify this week on allegations ranging from sexual harassment of female employees to intimidation of witnesses and inference with an independent league probe.
Since then, Snyder has refused the Committee’s attempts to serve the subpoena, according to a spokesperson.
‘Mr. Snyder has so far refused to accept service of the Committee’s subpoena,’ read the spokesperson’s statement. ‘While the committee has been, and remains, willing to consider reasonable accommodations requested by witnesses, we will not tolerate attempts to evade service of a duly authorized subpoena or seek special treatment not afforded to other witnesses who testified in this matter.
‘The Committee will not be deterred from obtaining Mr. Snyder’s testimony, and we remain committed to ensuring transparency about the toxic workplace culture at the Washington Commanders and the NFL’s inadequate response.’
While NFL commissioner Roger Goodell did testify remotely about the league investigation into the Commanders at Wednesday’s hearing, Snyder refused an invitation to testify, citing concerns over the scope of questioning and an unspecified overseas business trip.
Maloney, speaking at Wednesday’s hearing, cast doubt on that excuse, accusing Snyder of going on a vacation in France.
‘Mr. Snyder is in France, where he has docked his luxury yacht near a resort town,’ she said.
Snyder remains out of the country on business, a source told DailyMail.com.
However, another Snyder spokesperson told DailyMail.com that Snyder ‘has not refused to appear for a deposition,’ but rather, it’s now his attorney Karen Seymour who is out of the country.
Dan Snyder (right) pictured alongside his wife, Tanya, who has taken over day-to-day control of the team following the NFL’s $10 million fine against the club over hostile workplace claims
In response to his absence at Wednesday’s hearing on Capitol Hill, chairwoman Carolyn Maloney (Democrat-New York) announced her intention to subpoena Snyder to testify this week on allegations ranging from sexual harassment of female employees to intimidation of witnesses and inference with an independent league probe. While NFL commissioner Roger Goodell did testify remotely about the league investigation into the Commanders at Wednesday’s hearing, Snyder refused an invitation to testify, citing concerns over the scope of questioning and an unspecified overseas business trip. Maloney (pictured) cast doubt on that excuse, accusing Snyder of going on a vacation in France. ‘Mr. Snyder is in France, where he has docked his luxury yacht near a resort town,’ she said
Snyder’s 300-foot megayacht (pictured) was allegedly in French waters during Wednesday’s Capitol Hill hearing on hostile workplace allegations against the Washington Commanders
‘The Committee offered only one date – June 30 – and Mr. Snyder’s attorney is out of the country and unavailable on that date,’ read the statement provided by a Snyder spokesperson in response to a DailyMail.com inquiry to Seymour. ‘Mr. Snyder’s lawyer has provided alternative dates to the Committee and looks forward to finding a path forward for Mr. Snyder’s further cooperation and to address remaining due process concerns.’
That spokesperson did not immediately respond to a follow-up question about Snyder’s willingness to testify before the Committee.
One source did tell DailyMail.com that in addition to scheduling concerns, Snyder’s team also wants to address other procedural issues as well.
Congressional subpoenas are typically handled by attorneys, rather than witnesses or defendants, and are often facilitated via email.
And as Georgetown University’s Federal Legislation Clinic director Dave Rapallo told ESPN, the Committee can tap US Marshals to serve Snyder with a subpoena directly.
The Committee has been investigation the Commanders’ workplace culture, which has been described as toxic.
Various reports have detailed claims of sexual harassment made by female ex-employees against male co-workers and supervisors, many of whom have since been dismissed. Sexual harassment allegations against team employees ranged from inappropriate comments to the creation of a lewd behind-the-scenes video from a cheerleader calendar shoot in 2008, according to a 2020 Washington Post report that first uncovered the claims. A former cheerleader also alleged that Snyder suggested that she join his ‘close friend’ in a hotel room in 2004 so they ‘could get to know each other.’
Those revelations prompted a team investigation handled by attorney Beth Wilkinson, but the league quickly assumed control of that probe with Wilkinson’s team reporting to the commissioner’s office.
The NFL then issued a $10 million fine to punish the club (which is worth an estimated $4.2 billion) and Snyder volunteered to cede day-to-day control of the team to his wife, Tanya.
But the league’s refusal to release a report on its investigation, citing privacy concerns of witnesses, prompted the Oversight Committee to launch its own investigation into the team, Snyder, and the NFL probe.
That investigation has led to more allegations of sexual harassment, including former employee Tiffani Johnston’s claim that Snyder grabbed her thigh at a team dinner and pressured her to get into a limousine.
Johnston’s testimony in February triggered a new league investigation that’s currently being led by Mary Jo White, a former US attorney and chairwoman of the Securities and Exchange Commission.
White is also looking into claims of financial improprieties by a former vice president of sales for the team – an accusation that is also being investigated the Virginia attorney general’s office. The NFL has said White’s findings will be made public, and Goodell reiterated that point at Wednesday’s hearing.
Snyder and the team have denied the financial accusations and Snyder has denied sexually harassing Johnston.
Prior to the Committee’s hearing, members revealed new evidence that they claim ‘sheds light’ on Snyder’s role in ‘creating a hostile work environment.’
In a press release, the Committee accused Snyder of attempting to discredit victims with his own shadow investigation aimed at influencing the NFL’s internal probe of the team and discouraging witnesses from coming forward. That league investigation was concluded in 2020 and resulted in a $10 million fine for the club, but no public report was ever released, perhaps saving Snyder from more public criticism.
Despite that, Goodell repeated Wednesday that ‘Dan Snyder has been held accountable,’ and deflected questions about the absence of any report by saying the NFL was protecting confidentiality agreements with witnesses.
The House Committee on Oversight and Reform also released a 29-page memo on Wednesday detailing findings from its eight-month probe into the Commanders and the NFL’s handling of sexual harassment accusations.
Snyder’s lawyers allegedly created a 100-slide dossier that included private emails, texts, and social media posts from journalists, victims and witnesses, who had accused the club of harassment, according to the Committee. Furthermore, private investigators working for Snyder allegedly approached former cheerleaders in an effort to buy their silence and convince them to shift blame to other former employees.
In a public statement, a spokesman for Snyder said the hearing is ‘a politically charged show trial’ adding that Congress shouldn’t investigate ‘an issue a football team addressed years ago.’
For his part, Goodell told the Committee that the alleged ‘shadow investigation’ described in the memo violates NFL policy.
‘Any kind of harassment against people who want to come forward and tell the truth—we would not permit, and we would not find acceptable,’ Goodell told Rep. Jamie Raskin (Democrat-Maryland).
For Snyder, Wednesday’s hearing came at an inopportune time.
On Tuesday, the Washington Post reported details of a $1.6 million settlement allegedly paid to an ex-team employee in 2009 after the woman accused Snyder of groping her aboard a team plane and trying to remove her clothing.
The existence of the settlement was referenced in previous court filings involving Snyder, but the specific allegations had not been revealed publicly until Tuesday, when the Post detailed a letter written by an attorney who conducted the team’s investigation into the matter.
Goodell did admit on Wednesday that he was aware of the 2009 claims against Snyder, as well as the fact that the allegations went unreported at the time – a violation of the NFL’s personal conduct policy.
[ad_2]
Source link
