i would argue none of us why are we doing it as a parent? >> we have had a chance to see today what we did in the paper. the depth of your knowledge on different topics. i will turn it over to chris griffin know. . >> four very quick thank yous. first to our presenting spons

sponsors. second to our incredible speakers and moderators. third the entire team especially rachel hof and ryan richardson our external affairs team. incredible work they did to make today as seamless and credible experience as it has been. i thank you all for coming and appreciate you. have a good evening.

>> the house and senate are in session today. the senate working on several judicial and executive nominations. the house debating and set to vote on a couple of tax related measures today. earlier today on the house floor, texas democratal green responded to media comments by morning joe host questioning this week's congressional black caucus speeches on the ferguson grand jury decision where members held up their hands while on the house floor.

here is congressman green's remarks from earlier. >> i rise today to say thank you to the many persons who serve in law enforcement. they have difficult jobs and they do their jobs well. i salute them. i also salute those who have been engaged in peaceful protests. peaceful protest is the best protest. peaceful protest can make a difference in the lives of people i know because i stand here today because of peaceful protests. i would like to continue what i started on yesterday when i indicated that i would give a response today to a query made on morning joe. i want you to know dear friends, that i don't believe that the query was made with malice afore thought. i think it was a genuine expression of concern.

while expressions may connote otherwise to some, i believe this is a question that should have been asked and needs to be answered. the question was, what is wrong with these people, meaning three members of congress. what is wrong with these people that they could woman to the well of the house of representatives and they would hold their hands up. what is wrong with them? here is the answer, my dear brother. the same thing that was wrong with the pilgrims and caused them to come to plymoth rock. the same thing that caused persons to throw tea into the boston harbor. the same thing that caused farmers to come to the united states capitol to protest. the same thing that caused rosa parks to take a seat on the bus against the law. the same thing that caused dr. king to march. the same thing that caused him

to cross the bridge on bloody sunday. what's wrong with these people? they refuse to accept injustice. i refuse to accept injustice. what happened in ferguson was an injustice. i refuse to accept injustice. injustice anywhere is still a threat to justice everywhere, dr. king was right. injustice in ferguson is a threat to justice in houston. a threat to justice in boston, to justice anywhere. it is still a threat to justice everywhere. and so, i will continue to hold my hands up i will continue to suppose those who engage in peaceful protest. holding one's hands up is an indication that you don't have any that will be harmful. an indication that you are willing to move freely and give an opinion about something that

you believe to be important. i think that this will symbolize a movement that will met mor -- met mor if i sis -- that it will not go away. it will become a part of the protest movement. i also want to know that what happened with the rams players was a seminole moment and i want to legitimize what they did. i have already said that i will have flags flown over the united states of america in each person's name. somebody is going to say well, what happened people who may have committed a crime? washington wasn't perfect, but we honored him. jefferson wasn't perfect and we honor him. i am going to honor him for what

he did at that seminole moment. just as i believe that carlos and smith should be honored with what they did indicating that they were protesting at the olympics in 68. i am honored to have this opportunity today to indicate to the world finally that dr. king was right when he said the truest measure of a person is not where the person stands in times of comfort and convenience when everybody is patting you on the back, all your bills are paid and things couldn't be better. the truest measure is not where you stand in times of comfort and convenience. the truest measure is where do you stand in times of challenge and controversy, when people are throwing the slings and arrows of life at you because you took a simple stand against injustice

and it was injustice. i can explain it. i regret that i wasn't invited on the program to give my point of view so i had to take to the floor of the house of representatives to give what i would have given if given the opportunity. god bless you mr. speaker, thank you for the time. >> congressman al green from the house floor earlier today. in other news, this from the ap, a new york city grand jury has cleared a white police officer in the choke hold death of the unarmed black man. garner had been stopped on suspicion of selling loose unlicensed cigarette. video appeared to show an officer putting garner in a choke hold after he refused to be handcuffed. the medical examiner ruled the death a homicide. the grand jury did not indict.

the grand jury refusal to indict is yet another disturbing example of impunity when it comes to officers involved in the deaths of black men. and we're hearing from members of the new york delegation. while this decision is shocking, i want to echo the statement of a wide range of leaders inside and outside of government who are urging that protests remain pealful. i'm shocked by this grand jury decision and will be calling on the department of justice to investigate. also in a facebook post, peter king of new york says while the death of eric garner was tragic, all new yorkers should respect the decision of the grand jury not to indict nypd officer. during this tense time in new yo

yo york, it is time for all new yorkers and indeed all americans to acknowledge that fact. as you can see on his facebook page, here is an idea. stop breaking the law and nobody will be put in these situations. allen responds absolutely outrageous statement. why don't you just come out and say what you really mean. shut up black people, and give us our proper thanks for everything we whites have done for you. enough is enough with this way of thinking. >> here is some of the programming you will find on the c-span networks. >> first live coverage of the memorial service for marion barry. saturday night at 10:00 onbook tv on c-span 2, university

professor on how the northeast u.s. was not always the haven of racial equality. and sunday at noon, our live three-hour conversation with author and american enterprise president, arthur brookes with your phone calls e-mails and tweets. martha jones on female slaves and the law. president george h.w. bush's exsecretary of state, james baker on the fall of the berlin wall and the liberation of eastern europe. like us on facebook, follow us on twitter.

>> with live coverage of the u.s. house on c span and the senate, here on c span three we compliment that coverage by showing you the most relevant public affairs events. then on weekends, c-span 3 is home to american history tv. american art facts, touring museums. history bookshelf, with the best known american history writers. c-span 3 created by the cable tv industry. watch us in hd. like us on facebook and follow

us on twitter. >> major league baseball and the national basketball association and the national hockey league. representatives from the players' association provided testimony about their group's roles and positions on these cases. >> the hearing will come to order. sports have always played a huge

sports is part of our cultural deal. i hope it's a good one. the 10-year-old son had a gigantic poster of ray. he's now 45. they serve as role models for our youth. generations of our children have grown up watching sporting events with their parents. it's a family affair.

it's an amazing american phenomenon. kids wear the jerseys of their favorite players. they have their posters and they collect their cards. most of which are not charged for, i guess. it's an amazing figure. and it's one that we want to talk about. i hope we can skip protests about how domestic violence is a larger societial problem. we often get that. you should know that this committee has had complete and national jurisdiction. we have exercised it with college sports, the ncaa, and we are today doing it through the courtesy of your presence.

of course it's a societial problem. and it's a grieveous one and it's compounded really fast in terms of public awareness and the coverage of it. but as a nation we have responsibility to collectively and aggressively address this terrible problem. when a celebrity athlete is charged with committing a domestic violence it uniquely revesh rates through our soelt in fascinating ways.

>> i want to learn what the four i want to know what they are doing to address this problem and we really do want to find out. i want to know if you're developing uniformed policies that will appropriately punish players that commit what are criminal acts against women and children i want to learn what they can do with their existing and what must be the subject of new collective bargaining which may be more popular with some than with others. i also want to be clear, the problem of domestic violence is not a problem unique to the nfl.

the nfl has made most of the headlines both for shocking and high profile incidents and for the league's response. all of the professional sports leagues represented here today have a problem with employees who have committed violence criminal acts, all of them. the league's records have not been good. there is a long list of players in the nfl, the nba, the nhl, and major league baseball who have been charged with and in some cases convicted of domestic violence and the leagues have done little or nothing in response. in fact the press has reported that a culture of silence this

is so that in most cases the athlete being male the wife doesn't want to give up the salary. it has to stop and that's what we are here for. my very excellent co-chair here. >> i grew up in a small town of south dakota of 800 people and we didn't get a newspaper until the following day. you didn't get box scores you had line scores. so we had the cbs affiliate.

i got to watch the green bay packers twice a year and that is when they played the minnesota vikings in the divisional. but that was my team. we didn't have a lot of the appar apparel that we now have so i made my own. i was a big bart star fan. i tell you all that by way of background just to indicate, i think, to all of us in this country have tremendous, you know, admiration for people who succeed at that level and it is incredible influence and power that young peechl are watching

and whether they like it or not, the people are role models and certainly we hope good ones. that's why i think this domestic violence issue is so important. i found the graphic security camera. to be sickening like so many others did across the country. the initial response to this matter was completely inadequate. at best they failed to understand the scope and severity by waiting to suspend mr. rice they sent a mixed message to millions of fans and the general public about how it handles such acts of violence. as you mentioned, this isn't unique to professional football. i'm troubled by the remarks

recent remarks of the commissioner of baseball that seemed to down play the extent of the problem within his sport. rather than minimizing the issue, the correct approach is for leagues to engage in meaningful talks to ensure player contaduct policies are sufficient. that may mean renegotiating and strengthening penalties where appropriate. questions of due process are also an important part of this conversation. but this is a conversation that needs to take place because sadly this issue is not going away any time soon. while i'm encouraged to hear the conversations begun, we should be working towards a consistent policy when it comes to such acts of violence. violence of any kind or particularly against women and children are particularly

inexcusable. i'm hopeful that today's hearing will put pressure on the leagues to make whatever changes necessary to make sure that such acts of violence are addressed swiftly and perpetrators are disciplined appropriately. we have examined a number of issues ranging from steroids in sports to protecting children from concussions. questions are often raised about whether it's the best use of our time and resources. in 2005 this committee held a series of hearings to examine the policies of major league baseball to examine the use ofstof stero steroids. many called the steroid hearings a waste of time and money. as a result of those hearings, major league baseball turned the corner from its sordid steroid

era and implemented reforms that we are still witnessing. we have been able to do so without changes in federal law. i believe this hearing is important. questions surrounding how professional sports leagues address domestic violence are valid ones. professional athletes and the teams they play for are, for better or worse, role models and opinion makers. what they do can help set an example especially for the youngsters who grew up watching them. it is disappointing that the league commissioners are not here to speak for their sports. it's also disappointing that heads of other players associations are not here today. these issues should not be partisan and it may very well be appropriate for the committee to revisit in the next congress to

assess progress in the leagues and players association in dealing with domestic violence. mr. chairman, thank you. >> now we will going to -- the chair of the relevant sub committee, claire mccaskill will speak for two minutes, i do believe, and be followed by senator hiller. >> thank you for holding this important hearing. >> it is a very dark and scary place wchl great power and influence comes great responsibility and no one will debate that probably the leagues you represent here today have more power and influence in our country than maybe any other institutions that i can think of.

professional sports must do a better job of setting an example to young people. they struggle with holding their abusers accountable. professional sports with very few exceptions have done little to hold those who commit this crime accountable. perpetrators know if they can get their victims to recan't, refuse to cooperate, threaten their financial future, threaten the future of their families' financial status or put them on an airplane to venezuela, if they can accomplish those things then nothing will happen. there has been little or no

effort to know that very few who are abused to have an adequate support system to get the support to come forward and hold their abuser accountable. and so by and large, professional sports teams have relied on the failure of the criminal justice system to get convictions as their excuse as to why no players or very few players have been held accountable. i'm anxious to hear how you view your responsibility to ind dependly gather the facts. >> thank you. i appreciate the committee's attention to such a matter. i didn't realize indiana was so advanced because we had three

television channels. i know there are some in this room that may question why congress is involved in this issue and i would like to explain why. every minute in the united states, 20 people will experience domestic violence. one in three women will experience physical violence from a partner sometime in their lifetime. as a husband and father, this is simply unexceptable and something that must be changed. the witnesses before us today represent the most popular and commercially successful sports leagues in the world. the past few years we witness

truly shocking acts. and how the union pros text these players. it's very clear to me that getting these players back on the field was more important than addressing incidences of sexual assault, domestic violence or child abuse. the leagues simply brushed these problems aside and left it to the courts. only when a video surfaced of the brutal punch an nfl player landed on his fiance did the conscious of america demand the leagues and unions change their approach. as i wrote in a letter earlier today, by waiting until a video of shocking domestic violence by one of their players became public they effectively condoned the actions of this player.

the players association said this decision is a victory for disciplinary process that is fair and transparent. this is not about due process. this is not about collective bargaining agreements you do not like any more or want to change. this is not about any type of labor issues you may have with the league. this is about helping to stop a terrible problem in society. wives, mothers, daughters, sisters, and friends are being beaten. when you're worrying more about getting back on the field, your priorities are out of order. instead of addressing the problem, inadequate or non-existent, aggressors have not been dealt with appropriately and the survivors of domestic violence have been left behind. there is no place in any society for the horrifying acts for

domestic violence and sexual assault. our leagues have a unique ability to make a difference. the american people need you to step up and this committee wants to know what you will do to take a stand. thank you. >> thank you. my name is troy vincent. i'm the executive vice president of football operations. i'm we want to set the high ees standa standards for our fans, players, and those of the general prodder public.

in 2007, commissioner goodell issued a conduct policy for all player, owners and league employees. as recent events made clear, we have not kept our standards current with our own values. we made mistakes. we have been humbled. we accepted criticism we receive and committed to being part of the solution. we will get this right. mr. chairman, when i consider these issues, i bring the perspective far beyond the nfl executive. domestic violence was a way of life when i grew up. my brother and i watched helplessly as my mother was beaten and knocked unconscious as we dialled 911. we saw how she struggled to seek help and find the courage to say no more. the fear and complexities remained very real in my life today. i have committed my life to work for the last 20 years as an advocate against domestic violence to keep others from experiencing this lifetime pain.

i relate to the 20 million victims and survivors of domestic violence, substance abuse in every community across our great nation. in addition, i had the honor and the privilege of playing in a national football league for 15 years. 12 years of those i served as a union official. four i served as a player's association president. i support the interest of all players in a fair process. i led these efforts and the players are terrific husbands, fathers and men who made incredible contributions to the communities. they know that league standards issues that concern everyone.

in 2007, the league and the player's union collaborated with a personal conduct policy. i was part of those efforts and today just as in the past, the league has invited the nfl pa with other experts to assist us in setting the highest possible standards. the nfl is taking steps to improve how we respond to incidents of domestic violence, child abuse and sexual assault. first, through efforts personally led by the commissioner, the nfl is taken a thorough review and having consulted with over 100 leading experts across a broad range of subjects. the goal is to set clear rules for misconduct to establish a fair process for our players. we will create a conduct committee responsible for review and recommend changes to the personal conduct policy going forward. experts will continue to advise both the conduct and the commission we always have the

right voices at the table for educational and disciplinary work. second, we are deploying a comprehensive mandatory education program for more than 5,000 men and women in the nfl family. our goal is to ensure that everyone understands and has the full scope of this behavior and is familiar with the warning signs associated with these crimes. education also aids prevention. how individuals can appropriately and safely help those at risk is another key focus. we are training the response teams to help prevent and respond quickly to family violence and sexual assault including safety, medical, legal, and financial support. fourth, we are a supporting leading domestic violence and

sexual assault awareness including the national domestic assault hotline. and the national resource center. fifth and finally, we are raising awareness at this critical issue. domestic violence and child abuse and sexual assault in collaboration with the no more campaign. the joyful heart foundation and the nfl airs public service announcements during the game and finally we are promoting programs for those who play and coach and manage our game at all levels, including age appropriate character development healthy relationship education as well as domestic violence and child abuse and assault education. we learned from our mistakes and by listening to experts in the domestic violence child abuse and the sexual assault communities, the more we listened and learned to become

more aware of these complexities. both of the problem and the solution. we are working hard to balance the issues of a fair process with the goal of preventing and punishing these behaviors. mr. chairman and the committee, we believe that wearing the uniform of the players is a privilege. it is not a right. every member of the nfl community must embrace this unique leadership role that we play in our society and the trust we look forward to working with the committee to advance these goals. i know we all share. thank you for this opportunity and chairman, i thank you for your lifetime service in this area. >> thank you. that was excellent testimony and

honest and a good beginning. thank you. >> good afternoon chairman and members. my name is terry patterson and i serve as the deputy managing director and special council of the nfl player's association whom i represent on the panel today. we greatly appreciate the interest in domestic violence. we welcome the opportunity to meet with members to discuss the issues concerning our sport. we have seen in the past the leadership of elected officials brought thoughtful and meaningful change for example in the area of concussions. we worked with and supported as they continued to push to protect athletes that participate in football on all levels.

we are here to address your concerns around professional sports. just to be clear, neither the players nor the nfl pa condone domestic violence in any form. we understand the significance of our position for society at large and for the families and individuals involved. any incidence is one too many. this week you will see players with many constituents as part of the play 60 campaign. we believe a comprehensive system of education prevention, intervention and counseling will help us find solutions to lowering the instances that present themselves each and every year. related to the sport, we believe they combine fair and appropriate discipline to prevent domestic violence and assisting those involved.

unfortunately we have seen repeated instances under the policy of the nfl and implemented by the commissioner has failed to get us closer to those solutions. we have seen on more than one occasion when matters were left to the nfl. it is mismanaged and will not stand outside the review in the bounty incidence. it was overturned, but also by a former nfl commissioner who was tasked with reviewing the actions. with ray rice, it was overturned after further review by a former federal judge appointed as the neutral arbitrator. this system run by the nfl does not work for the members and as we heard as well as i'm sure you have, that continued to express with the current discipline. we have been tasked by the

membership to find solutions and bargain with the nfl for a better process. accordingly, in early october, we established a blue ribbon commission to advise us on matters of prevention, intervention and processes of discipline. i included the names of the commission in the testimony and their bios. we are also fortunate and pleased to see that a member of our commission is testifying at the hearing today. with the assistance of experts and community leaders, we started a dialogue with the membership to create membership

and policy to create societal issues. we requested they join with us and participating in the commission's work. the nfl declined to do so to date, but that didn't stop us from moving ahead. we cannot move ahead in bargaining by ourselves. we attempted to engage the league in formal negotiations to improve the conduct and the processes by which it is to be administered. we provided the nfl with a fair proposal over a month ago and despite the receipt of a letter response only this past sunday, the nfl refuses to commit to collective bargaining. we believe a jointly bargained system is the only way to ensure that professional football's approach to domestic violence as the credibility and the effectiveness that we have come to expect and respect such as the drug related policies. we remain committed to addressing the issues in a meaningful way because that's the only way we can ensure that change happens. we remain ready to assist the committee and improving the way domestic violence is with the sport and the country. thank you for your time and we

look forward to answering any questions you may have for us. >> thank you very much, miss patterson. i have to note there was an enormous amount of pressure coming from many directions. not necessarily the folks at the witness table, but the folks that you work with for us not to have this hearing. we went ahead anyway. not everything is -- the openness is not as commonly held of a process as i would like. mr. joe torre from major league baseball, welcome. >> thank you, mr. chairman. good afternoon. chairman rockefeller, senators and members of the committee. i'm joe torre, executive vice president of baseball operations for major league baseball. i want to thank you for the opportunity to discuss the efforts we are undertaking to

address the issue of domestic violence and sexual assault. the subject matter of this hearing is personally important to me as a person whose childhood was touched by domestic violence. i have come to understand that discussing the issue publicly has the potential to help millions of victims who believe that they must suffer in silence. in 2002, my wife and i formed the safe at home foundation to create educational programs aimed at ending the cycle of domestic violence and i'm proud to say that we reached close to 50,000 youngsters in that time. through my work in the area including cochairing the attorney general's task force on children exposed to violence, i have had the opportunity to work without standing individuals. they have devoted their lives to working towards solving the issue of domestic violence in this country. the commissioner has instilled in our sport the understanding

that major league baseball is a social institution. as our national pastime has an obligation to set a positive example. we deplore domestic violence and crimes against women and families. we understand the clear public expectation for the professional sport leagues to be leaders in addressing the social ill. some of our clubs have taken a leading in the issue. the seattle mariners in a statewide initiative called refuse to abuse. going forward, they develop a stand alone policy that addresses domestic violence and sexual assault prior to the upcoming season. although we are in the midst of developing the policy, i would like to explain what we have done thus far and hope to do in the next few months.

since september of 2014, as part of the education process, representatives of major league baseball met with over a dozen national and local organizations focused on addressing domestic violence and violence against women and or providing services and support to victims. representatives from those groups consistently told us while they are obviously unsettled by the recent incidence of domestic violence and professional ports, they believe those incidents have signed a light on an issue often in the shadows. they believe and we agree that sports leagues can make a difference. we have begun selectioning a steering committee that the training materials with the player, staff and families. they publicized contact information for hotlines and shelters. mlb intends to develop the programs that each designed for the families and intimate partners of players. we also are developing protocols

that our clubs must follow in response to domestic violence or sexual assault incidence that will include appropriate measures to ensure the safety of affected individuals providing confidential counselling and treatment for victims and providing counseling and intervention for perpetrators. major league baseball selected san francisco based group called futures without violence to help us develop and implement training and education for all of our players. futures has been partnering with the san francisco giants for more than a decade. they arranged for doctor linda chamberlain to speak with the medical staffs of our clubs at mlb's winter meetings this coming weekend. doctor chamberlain founded the alaska family violence

prevention project and will be speaking to the club medical staffs on a trauma informed approach to addressing domestic violence. the top prospects will be educated in domestic violence and sexual assault in the rookie career development program. beginning with the spring training this february, every major and minor league player will be educated on issues relating to domestic and men can stop race and a call to men and casa des pranza. the mlb clubs and the commissioner's office will also be educated. the commissioner understands that any policy is appropriate discipline for player who is engage. prohibitly the commissioner has the authority and mlb's collective bargaining agreement

with the player's association that disciplines for just cause for conduct that is colorly and they are not limited to the federal, state, or local law. under a just cause standard, the commissioner's office is at the evidentiary hearing without cooperating witnesses or tangible witnesses regarding the conduct. the ash traitors in the past have been less inclined to uphold severe discipline under a just cause standard for off field conduct. it does not impact the player's ability to perform. mlb proposed revisions to the disciplinary policy covering players that would make it easier for the commissioner to impose an appropriate level on players who commit acts of violence or sexual assault and have that discipline be upheld in arbitration.

have been less inclined to uphold severe discipline under a just cause standard for off field conduct. it does not impact the player's ability to perform. mlb proposed revisions to the mlb has proposed revisions to its disciplinary policy covering mlb players that would make it easier for the commissioner to impose an appropriate level of discipline on players who commit acts of domestic violence or sexual assault and have that discipline be upheld in arbitrati arbitration. mlb does not have the right to insist on any changes to player discipline until its current collective bargaining agreement with the players association expires in december of 2016. however, we are hopeful that we will come to an agreement with the players association prior to the start of next season on a disciplinary policy specifically tailored to domestic violence and sexual assault. as we told our owners two weeks ago, major league baseball is

committed to developing a culture in which its athletes implicitly understand their moral obligation as both men and role models to speak out and act against crimes against women and families. we fully understand that educating over 4,000 players from diverse backgrounds on an issue that many of them have not previously considered is not an easy undertaking. however, we intend to devote the time and the resources necessary to accomplish just that. thank you, mr. chairman. >> mthank you, mr. torre. it was my mistake that i did not say at the beginning of this hearing that we face two challenges. generally we have a rule that witnesses can speak for five minutes or less but not more and secondly we have votes starting at 4:00, so that puts pressure on all of us to get on with it.

ms. virginia sites, outside counsel. what is outside counsel? >> i advise them. i've been outside special counsel for most of the last 25 years to major league baseball players association. >> but they couldn't make it? >> i'm testifying on behalf of the association's executive director, tony clark. he couldn't attend today because he is right now chairing mlbpa's annual executive board meeting. it will not surprise you to hear that one of the major topics at that meeting that's under discussion today and tomorrow is, in fact, domestic violence and the work the association's been doing this fall to address this. >> please proceed with your testimony. >> i will attempt to be brief. >> you don't need to be. that time is mine. you have your full five minutes. >> this fall, the players association has been working with major league baseball to examine our current program addressing domestic violence, which only covers players in

light of recent events. we've been considering how it needs to be modified and perhaps folded into a program for the entire baseball family that's based on accountability, consequences and fairness. back in 2011, the players association and major league baseball negotiated and implemented a policy that addresses off field violent conduct including domestic violence in two ways. it provides for both therapeutic intervention and for discipline in case of inappropriate unlawful conduct. under our joint treatment program we utilize medical professionals all around the country to design therapeutic treatments for players who are charged with domestic violence related crimes. based on our understanding of domestic violence we had moved away from a one size fits all approach in favor of individualization and case by case treatment for the player and the family involved. with respect to discipline, as mr. torre described, the program gives the commissioner of baseball or the employer club

authority to discipline a player where an act of domestic violence has been alleged. under the collective bargaining agreement, the player may be disciplined for just cause for any conduct materially detrimental or materially prejudicial to the best interests of baseball including any conduct that violates federal, state or local law. it's critically important from the association's point of view that discipline be imposed for just cause and that it be subject to review before a neutral arbitrator. in addition to the program just described, the association maintains its own clinical psychiatrist on staff. he's well known and frequently meets with players on a confidential basis to address mental health issues as they arise and that might lead to violence. this part of the association's program reflects its belief that the most effective treatment is that what happens before violence can occur. in some our program involves -- under the current player may

seek help through our own clinical psychiatrist. we recognize, however, that more can be done. and so this fall we've begun a dialogue with mlb about modifications and improvements to our program. that includes an enhanced public relss program to promote the understanding and eradication of domestic violence in our society. second, an improved education and therapeutic program for major league baseball players and their families so that potential issues can be addressed in an appropriate, confidential manner before violence occurs and so that all are aware of resources that can provide assistance and prevent ha harm. and third possible changes to the existing disciplinary structure for domestic violence offenses. like many org sayings, mlb has consulted with a wide range of expert anding expert organizations in the domestic violence area. we've learned there's no one

simple solution, no one easy answer, we hope by meeting with the experts and gathering their recommendations we can become a credible voice in the ongoing national dialogue about how to end domestic violence. mr. chairman, thank you for this opportunity. i'm happy to answer any questions you might have. >> thank you very much, ms. seitz. ms. kathleen behrens, executive vice president, the national basketball association. please proceed. >> thank you, mr. chairman and senator thune and member of the committee. appreciate your inviting us to this hearing today. my written testimony has been submitted to the committee, so i will certainly try to be brief in the interests of time. we share your view, however, that a hearing like this is certainly helpful and expect that it will generate not only thought but action and that can certainly help all of us at this table. i am the nba's executive vice

president for social responsibility and player programs and as such i oversee all of our community programs and partnerships as well as all of our educational efforts with our players. our commissioner adam silver regrets that he is not able to be here today but he had a longstanding commitment to lead a group of nba owners and executives on a trip to india this week. like the committee and like others already have spoken, we have taken a fresh look at all of our programs, policies and educational efforts in this area over the course of the last few months, and we have determined through our work, especially in partnership with the players association, that there is more that we can and should be doing to better educate our players and to help prevent domestic violence from occurring in the first place. we work closely with the players association on all of our educational programs for players and have determined that this year we need to do even more. we'll be doing new awareness and educational sessions with our players, with player family members, with team and league staff to help raise awareness,

inspire leadership and hopefully prevent domestic violence from happening within the nba family. at the same time, we know that discipline is part of the process as well. and our collective bargaining agreement allows for discretion for the commissioner but also neutral arbitration for our players. due process that we believe is fair. in the end we want to stress to this committee and to others that we take this issue seriously. we are committed to doing all that we can to prevent it. we are committed to doing all that we can to provide firm but fair discipline when necessary and we will continue to learn and improve in all of these areas. happy to answer any questions that the committee has. thank you. >> thank you, very much, for that. ms. michelle roberts, executive director, nba players association. welcome. >> thank you. good afternoon, mr. chairman. is my mike on? i can't tell.

now it's on. >> beautiful. >> again, my name is michelle roberts. and i'm the executive director of the national basketball players association, the labor union that represents all nba players in collective bargaining. i appreciate the committee's desire to explore the topic of domestic violence in professional sports. as a lawyer formerly in private practice with the law firm of scad and arbs, my most rewarding pro bono project regarding the representations of victims of domestic violence who were seeking protection orders here in local courts in d.c. when i began my work in mid-september, i was encouraged to learn that domestic violence is a topic that our players recognized needed to be addressed long before the events of recent months when the public's attention has turned so intently on the subject. recent events have give us an opportunity to re-examine and strengthen the already

comprehensive scheme the nba and the nbpa had in place and even more safeguards with the focus on prevention and counseling. we want to make sure that every player, wife, significant other and family member has a safe environment to seek help without fear of retaliation or additional harm. in doing so our recent efforts have brought together representatives of all members of the nba family in an unprecedented fashion. we also want to lead by example and help create the kind of awareness and attention that this society-wide problem deserves. let me first step back to briefly skib sobrief ly describe some of the steps our players have already taken through collective bargaining and otherwise to address these issues. i do not exaggerate when i say that we begin to broach this topic with our players years before they even enter the nba. each june at our top 100 camp,

the nbpa brings together the elite high school basketball players together with their parents and helped prepare them for competitive life at the next level with an emphasis on character, education and life skills development. close to 200 current nba players have attended the top 100 camp. during this week-long program at the university of virginia campus, the players work on their basketball skills, but the marngt of each day is focused away from the court where our staff of retired players, counselors, psychologists and psychiatric professionals lead large and small group discussions that, in part, focus specifically on respect issues with girls and women. at this young and impressionable age, we teach players that part of embracing their manhood includes treating every woman with kindness and respect. at last june's camp, the boys and their parents spent a great deal of time with khalima johnson, a very effective educator and founder of the sasha center a detroit-based

awareness center focusing on sexual assault. the education continues the moment the player enters the league with the rookie transition program, a four-day joint program between labor and management that likewise focuses on personal skills development and numerous topics related to conduct including domestic violence. in past years judge glenda hatchet has been a very effective voice delivering graphic and powerful presentations on the effects and consequences of sexual misconduct and abuse of women. to complete the progression, we not only raise awareness for our players before and upon entering the nba we now hold a team awareness meeting designed joint byly by the nba and the mbpa devoted solely to tp toik of domestic violence. as we speak khalima johnson and ted bunch, a leading violence prevention organization are traveling around the country to meet with every nba team for a session devoted solely to

domestic violence awareness. these sessions supplement the year-round work done by our nbpa staff that work full-time for the union together with the joint labor management player assistance and health education assistance program to help players confront the issues that can be at the root of a domestic conflict. our collective bargaining agreement lays out various poll sis designed to prevent, deter and, if necessary, punish acts of domestic violence. under our uniform player contract they are required to conduct themselves on and off the court according to thighest standards of honesty and sportsmanship. the commissioner may impose a fine or suspension for conduct that does not conform to standards of morality or fair play that does not comply at all times with sfat and federal and local laws and is prejudicial or detrimental to the nba. i can see i'm running out of time. i end on this final note.

since i began my tenure, i have determined that in addition to the cba mandated levels of discipline, a greater focus is warranted on prevention and services to family members. at the union's expense, i recently convened a group of nba mothers, fathers, spouses and significant others for an all-day session at our offices in new york. those discussions were facilitated by a domestic violence expert with the d.c. coalition against domestic violence. among other things we identified as a principal need the establishment of a hot line and counseling service that for players and family members and other interested persons to seek out help without the fear of retaliation. many people are fearful if they speak out about the possibility of the actual occurrence of a domestic violence event, they will expose themselves to public ridicule, be alienated by relatives and friends and/or jeopardize a player's livelihood

and thus put at risk their family's financial health. everyone must be comfortable that there's a safe and confidential manner to seek help. now 6 minutes and 14 seconds i'll conclude my presentation and be happy to answer any questions. >> thank you very much. jessica berman, national counsel of the national hockey league. welcome. >> thank you, chairman. thank you, chairman, ranking member and the members of the committee for inviting the national hockey league to testify here today regarding domestic violence in professional sports. the nhl takes very seriously the issues of domestic violence. we believe we have an obligation to raise awareness, provide education and penalize offenders all with the hope and intention of deterring future misconduct. to that end and working with the nhlpa, the do youly authorized collective bargaining representative, all nhl place, the league has responsibly

developed, i plemented and enforced strict policies, practices and procedures regulating the off-ice personal conduct of its players which extend to and encompass situations of domestic abuse. a core component underlying these rules and policies is a comprehensive education program which has existed for at least the last decade. the league provides annual training for our players on a variety of critical social issues and these issues have included domestic abuse. this training and education has been delivered in a number of forums and contexts and by multiple voices. those voices have included the nhl's security department and medical professionals charged with administering our substance abuse and behavioral health program which is a jointly administered program created by the nhl and nhlpa in 1996. they meet with players on an annual basis on each team to discuss with them, among other things, personal conduct issues.

in addition, the nhl and nhlpa organize an annual rookie orientation program and at this past year's program, at two different breakout sessions, the issue of domestic violence was addressed as well as other personal conduct issues. we believe that by making the message clear and reinforcing them on a regular basis, the players are better prepared to appreciate and manage difficult problems that they face both from a personal and professional standpoint. and as a result, they will be better equipped to avoid situations that will bring harm to themselves and to their families. in addition to our work in the area of education and raising awareness, the collective bargaining agreement which will remain in effect until at least september 15, 2020, governs the terms and conditions for all of the players. they grant the league and its 30 clubs to enforce the rules

regulating player's off ice personal conduct. and this responsibility will continue do be exercised appropriately fairly and judiciously. i'll briefly go through a couple of the relevant provisions which provide the league with that authority. in our collective bargaining agreement, the commissioner has broad authority to act when a player has been guilty of conduct that is detrimental to or against the welfare of the league or the game of hockey. this language has been applied by the league office to a wide array of personal conduct off-ice matters and we believe it provides the league with an adequate degree of discretion and authority. the standard form employment contract had is also part of our collective bargaining agreement provides nhl teams with the authority to discipline players for conduct that violates the rule that requires a player to conduct himself on and off the rink according to the highest standards of honesty, morality, fair play and sportsmanship.

and to refrain from conduct detrimental to the club, and league generally. the national hockey league remains committed to addressing the players's problems in a meaningful way and protecting both the integrity and generally good reputation of our players and our sport. we do not hesitate to take disciplinary action in necessary and appropriate circumstances as most recently evidenced by the indefinite suspension issued to a player in the nhl who was recently charged with a domestic violence offense. while no trial has occurred in that situation and the player remains innocent until proven guilty, we felt the most appropriate course of action in that case was to remove the player from the ice at least until we're able to satisfy ourself with respect to what has actually transpired. the nhl appreciates being

provided the opportunity to express our views here today and we remain available to answer any questions you may have. >> thank you, ms. berman. steve fair, the special counsel national hockey league players association. >> thank you. if i might, i would like to say i've never lived in and never been to west virginia, but i've long been an admirer of the senator from west virginia. i'd like to thank you for all that you've done, not just in holding this hearing but throughout your career, wish you the best in 2015 and beyond. in regard to the executive directors other than ms. roberts being able to show up, i would like to say the executive directy of the nhlpa who happens to have the same last name as i do wanted very much to be at this hearing. he had a longstanding commitment overseas. i believe staff was told the hearing was next week he would be happy to attend. he would be happy to meet with you either in your offices or at

a future hearing. there could be advantage ors disadvantages to going last. i will not read from my statement. it's too long and parts would be repetitive, not only what ms. berman said about the nhl but what ms. roberts and ms. seitz said on behalf of baseball players and basketball players. professional athletes face extraordinary public scrutiny both on and off their field of play. they're often thrust into the public spotlight at a very young age, sometimes 20 or even younger in the nhl with pressures few people rarely experience during their lifetime. many of you expect the players to be role models, but in most cases their background and training in high performance athletics has done very little to assist them in assuming that role. in light of this, the nhlpa has worked diligently with the nhl to develop policies and programs to help these young men and their families deal with these pressures. we believe our efforts have met with some success, but it is a

never-ending project. it starts with education. we stress education for our players beginning at a young age, as ms. berman indicated, much of that is done through the sabh program in which services are available to all players and all who could be involved in a situation involving domestic violence, that includes families, that includes girlfriends a, and i did ask staff it was appropriate to say that word. counseling is available on a 24-hour basis. we have our rookie orientation program initiated by the players association along with the league. it is based on a model that was used by nmlb and the associate director of the mlbpa for many years we express training on players coming into the league on many subjects including domestic violence. on the subject of discipline,

the cba does give the commissioner the power to discipline for what we call off-ice conduct. obviously, that wee include situations involving domestic violence. under the cba such discipline is eventually reviewable to a neutral arbitrator. the arbitratoarbitrator's askedw whether the discipline imposed for off-ice conduct was, quote, supported by evidence and proportionate to the gravity of the offense. this right to appeal should encourage the fair and consistent application of disciplinary policyies and results that can withstand objective scrutiny. the fact that the arbitrator is independent, is not an employee of the nhl or representative of the nhl adds considerable responsibility to the process. any penalties imposed are just. i should add, as i said in my statement, that discipline in this area can ge complex, especially when there's interplay between potential

criminal charges or actual criminal charges and disciplinary proceedings on the workplace. finally, as commissioner bettman said last week in a letter to the house committee, there have been very few incidents that have come to light in recent years involving nhl players and domestic violence. and i do not say that, senator thune, to minimize or downplay the issue because obviously it's a very important issue, and even if there is one, there's one too many and we need to continue to work until there are none. thank you for holding this hearing. and i look forward to answering your questions. >> thank you very much. just to make an announcement, it's very, very difficult if the leadership holds votes at 4:00 for us to have a reasonable hearing, and so i'm trying with everything i can to get them to postpone those votes for at least a half hour so that all members have a chance to speak

and ask questions. it's much too important a hearing to let a couple of votes get in the way of it. >> mr. vincent, as we discussed last friday the former federal judge who heard ray rice's appeal of his suspension ruled that mr. rice had not misled nfl commissioner roger goodell about his confrontation with his fiancee. and they discuss the predisciplinary meeting stating that, quote, at the time of the june 16th meeting the nfl knew there was a camera inside the elevator and thought it was likely there was a video from the camera. various sources had reported the existence of such a video. rice had received this video in discovery during his criminal case but the nfl never asked

rice for the second video. that's end quote, that's from the judge. so the question is how did the commissioner not know that there was a second video inside the elevator at the time of the june 16 meeting with mr. rice? >> well, senator, i'd like to begin with judge jones' decision and her opinion letter. i thought it made very clear the commissioner first imposing discipline then coming back and imposing discipline again. that was a deficiency in our system. but as we read through her opinion later, she made it obvious. if the commissioner had imposed more severe discipline on the onset, it would have made it very difficult for her to rule any differently. we've learned. i think the commissioner has acknowledged those mistakes. we have acknowledged those mistakes. this is all part of our valuation as we look at the new personal conduct policy. we failed, the commissioner failed to impose the proper

discipline in the ray rice case in the very beginning. >> but the question is whether or not the second video, how did you not know that? i assume that it was there. ray rice had it. >> senator, the first video, heartless, gutless, despicable. i don't think there was a need for a second video to impose the proper discipline. we failed in that particular area. the commissioner has acknowledged that our office that, we made a critical mistake. >> so what efforts is the nfl making to ensure in the future that all the relevant available evidence is there before making a decision on whether and how to punish a player that's involved in a domestic violence or sexual assault case? >> well, i would begin, senator, with stating having the right people at the table, having the right voices to evaluate, to potentially investigate these horrific crimes, i thought at

the time, we know now that the right people weren't at the table listening to our experts across the country we've learned that the right voice, the right discipline, the right process was not in place. we've learned from those mistakes. we've begun implementing at least at minimum having the right people, the right discussion, the right system, one, by protecting the victims first and survivors and then secondly working towards a fair process but firm discipline. >> when might we expect the moeller investigation to conclude? >> we're expecting that at any time. we've all been put on notice in our office, as mr. mueller gives us a call or he wants to speak, to be cooperative. but we're hoping that that ends -- we're expecting that report to come to some closure shortly. >> will that be a public report that will detail the results of that investigation? >> i believe so.

>> i just want to ask a question and this would be of the players association and in the interests to allow others to ask questions i'll make this sort. so the answer is yes or no. a lot has been focused on finding the right penalty for domestic violence, but would you agree at its core the solution will require athletes to take responsibility for their own action and use the same self-discipline that's allowed them to excel at sports to renounce and end this ugly violence? to the player responsibility, ms. patterson. >> i would say that it's a multifaceted approach which includes personal accountability, but i do believe it includes education, counseling and some of the other efforts that ms. roberts specifically spoke about, particularly before players come into the league. you mo, know, we certainly

acknowledge that accountability for your own actions is significant but we do have to acknowledge that players are sons, they're brothers, they're fathers, husbands, and we just have to assist in that development. >> yes or no? >> i would say accountability is a critical part of any solution. >> ms. roberts? >> i would concur with both responses, yes. >> i think players are and expect to be held accountable for their conduct in many ways. >> thank you, mr. chairman. >> thank you, i'm going to ask one question. not a second question. just one question. so everybody gets a chance to do so, then we'll have a second round if we're so lucky. this is directed to ms. behrens and ms. roberts. the nba's policy on domestic violence is a minimum ten-game suspension for felony violent acts. as i understand the policy, the league does not impose penalties when there is no conviction that

becomes important. but many domestic violence cases do not result in conviction because of some of the factors, the culture of silence and all the rest of it, people withdraw, don't press or whatever, too often victims don't cooperate with law enforcement for a variety of reasons. so the charges are mysteriously dropped or defendants will plead no contest. when i hear no contest, red lights go off in all directions. but this has a very different effect. in the last two years i'm aware of six nba players who have been charged with domestic violence that the league did not impose any penalties because there have been no convictions. so my question to ms. behrens, ms. roberts, are you prepared to develop uniform policies for players that have been charged with domestic violence but there are no convictions? >> mr. chairman, i think we -- as i submitted to the committee, an opinion that the commissioner

released about two weeks ago relating to the suspension of one of our players, and in that the commissioner acknowledged that we needed to do more in this issue in terms of discipline going forward both in terms of due process and not really relying on the criminal justice system. one of the things that we learned from one of our experts and a number of other members talked about it, certainly senator mccaskill mentioned it, domestic violence for too long has gone both underreported, underprosecuted and undersentenced. and we are committed to making sure that we're not just relying on the criminal justice system going forward. and that we are independently investigating charges that might be brought against a player and as such are making sure that the commissioner who does have discretion beyond the ten games that you mention in the collective bargaining agreement does have discretion beyond that to impose a suspension that is

longer as we did in the recent case of jeff taylor. and so that is our plan going forward, that we will be doing independent investigations ensuring due process for our players and making sure that the expenses are firm but fair. >> ms. roberts? >> senator, in the existing cba there is, in fact, language that allows the commissioner, even in the absence of a conviction, if there is a reasonable basis to conclude that a player has been engaged in violence including domestic violence, counseling can be ordered and again, as kathy's mentioned, there is a basis to impose discipline. so it's, quote, unquote, in there, having said that, i agree with ms. behrens, you are continuing to have discussions about ways to tweak and improve our system to the extent there's any absence of sufficient transparency about there being the ability to impose fair discipline. >> so you're both indicate to me that you're moving away from the necessity for a conviction before action can be taken? >> what i'm suggesting is that,

as i said, there is language that does permit if there's a reasonable basis to conclude that a player has engaged in violent conduct including domestic violence, subject to an investigation by the commissioner, if that's substantiated, there's the ability to exact a punishment. >> thank you. >> senator heller? >> thank you, mr. chairman, thank you for holding this hearing. also to our witnesses that are here today, thank you for taking time. ms. patterson, most of my questions will be directed towards you. yesterday "the washington post" reported that the nfl and the players associations are still at odds regarding changes to the personal conduct policy and how players discipline is handled. is that accurate? >> i would say yes. >> it is accurate? >> that's correct. >> also in the article, the union has taken the position that a player should have the right to determine whether they play or not after an incident like domestic violence or sexual assaults take place. is that also accurate?

>> i wouldn't say that's accurate generally. >> can you be more specific? >> well, it's hard with a hypothetical. i don't -- >> i'm just taking the article. >> right. >> is it true that the union's position is that a player should determine for themselves under certain incidents like domestic violence or sexual assault take place, determine for themselves whether or not they should play? >> no, i would not say that's accurate. >> what is accurate? >> that we want to have confidence in our process in terms of discipline in an incident does occur, and we would like to collectively bargain with the league on how that discipline is applied. >> so you're saying that the article in "the washington post" is inaccurate? >> i'm saying the question that was posed, and it sounds narrowly such because i'm not familiar with the article and nor was i asked to be a part of it, but i'm saying that that part that you just asked me about is inaccurate. >> i'm just trying to get to the

point as to whether or not the players association is saying it's okay to knock out a woman with one punch on wednesday and still suit up for a team on sunday. >> absolutely not. we do not condone domestic violence. i said that earlier and i will keep stating it. we defend players and defend the process. >> is a ten-game suspension appropriate for knocking out his fiancee with one punch? >> i don't know that that is appropriate. what we think is unfair is inconsistency in handling of players and their issues. >> what would have been appropriate. you're eluding the questions. what would be an appropriate suspension for an individual that knocks out his wife. >> senator, i apologize for appearing to elude the questions but i just have to respectfully say that the union is not in the business of applying discipline. we're in the business of representing our membership to the full extent of their rights both under the law and under the collective bargaining agreement.

>> i would tend to disagree, ms. patterson, you're either for stopping sexual assault, domestic abuse and child abuse or you're not. >> right, but i'm not suggesting that we're condoning any sort of misconduct. >> let me ask you this. do you believe sexual assault, domestic violence, child abuse are far more important, far more important than the union's issues with collective bargaining? >> i would agree that they're far more important, but that's outside the scope of what we're talking about in terms of labor. i agree that societal issues are more important, yes. >> mr. chairman, i have no more questions. >> you've done a very good job on the ones you've asked. >> thank you very much, mr. chairman. thank you. i grew up with professional sports. we actually -- i think i'm the only senator up here that has all four teams in these leagues in their state, not competitive, but -- and my dad, as many of

you may know is a sports writer and became a general columnist and i regularly would get tickets -- he would get an extra ticket to the nfl game and i would go watch when i was 12 years old and stand outside the locker room and wait for him and he'd be the last one out and there would be some rather inebriated fans as we left. and he's only 5'6" but they'd tap him on the back and say great game. and he would always say, it was a team effort. and i always have looked at sports that way. and i look at it from another way, and that is a prosecutor for eight years. knowing what it's like when our office would have a very difficult case against the late kirby puckett who is an icon in our state. we did not win that case, but i could understand that culture and how difficult it is to win those cases in the court of law. so i appreciate the questions that were asked about discipline beyond the courtroom. i also understand what it's like to take on domestic violence cases. mr. vincent, in our office, we had a poster outside of my door,

and it was a woman with a band-aid on her nose and she was holding a little boy and the words under the poster said, beat your wife and it's your kid that will go to jail. and i so appreciated your personal story and your willingness to stop that cycle of violence in your own life, and i know how difficult that is. so thank you very much. my question is really about how to make sure that these criminal cases move forward. i was disturbed by reports in "the new york times" and "the washington post" that leagues or teams may be discourage iing wo that come forward to them, wives or partners of players, from going forward to law enforcement. the only way you stop this cycle is not only what i hope you are all doing with your new approach to these issues is having tough penalties, but i also think you have to make sure that people are not discouraged from going forward. i would just like to ask this question of the four league representatives that are here, and that is that do your teams

ever discourage people that come to them, the owners or the coaches, from going forward with domestic violence cases to law enforcement? and do you have a policy in place and can you control these owners or coaches from doing that to make sure going forward that this does not happen again? i would start with you, mr. vincent. >> well, senator, we hope that that doesn't occur. and that's the culture that we have to break, that's the cycle that we have to break as we look at implementing our new policy. we've been talking about personal accountability and talking extensively about club accountability. we want to make sure that the victims and survivors actually have the proper support, that these women, these children, that we can break that silence. that they have a place that they can go to, they have support confidentially, that they're safe when they go home. we've embedded ourselves with our critical response teams and

making sure the local support is in place, but for -- >> i have a very focused question about not stopping people from going forward to law enforcement, not discouraging them from going from discouraging them. do you have -- is there a way to control the coaches and the team owners by saying you cannot do that, if someone comes forward, you have to encourage them to go to law enforcement. >> yes, ma'am. and part of our education, that's something we're educating on. >> thank you, thank you very much. mr. torre. >> yes, senator, i wholeheartedly agree with you on is not discouraging the victims from coming forward because that would be the worst thing that could happen. and i hope it doesn't happen in our sport because i know winning games are very important, but to me, being a good human being certainly surpasses that. >> and is there a policy in place -- >> well, we are discussing with

the players association -- >> why would the players association influence whether or not you tell someone to not go forward to law enforcement? >> no, i misunderstood that. there's no question -- >> -- that's negotiable issue. >> our teams, and we have general managers meetings, and owners meetings and i speak to every manager. and it's about doing things the right way and certainly being a human being. >> thank you. >> i went overboard. >> no, no, i appreciate that. i just think you got to think of this different than the collective bargaining issue. >> no question. >> this is a criminal investigation. >> senator, yes, we are, in fact, as part of our education efforts doing enhanced training for our team staff. and one of the things that we're making very clear is not only are we saying not to discourage, but we're encouraging and making sure that teams are being proactive in this space. and our first line is support

victims first and we're making that clear. >> ms. berman? >> i'm unaware of any discouragement and, to the contrary, we have a system in place where the nhl's centralized security department has contacts at every local team where if something like that was going on, i would hope we'd be hearing about it because it would certainly sly late league policy. >> thank you. >> are you finished? >> yes. >> okay. >> no? >> just an order of appearance. >> sure.

>> chair, i defer to senator mccaskill. >> let me correct the record on the nba questions about punishment. i've looked at the articles and the seconds of counseling for violent misconduct. let me make sure the record is clear. the most a commissioner can do for violence without a conviction is counseling, isn't that correct, ms. behrens. >> no, senator, that's not correct. >> what can the commissioner do besides counseling if there's not a conviction? >> the commissioner has discretion under our collective bargaining agreement, which is the discretion that he used in the suspension of jeff taylor most recently, and that discretion and that happening waj refers to the notion that conduct that is detrimental to the league is not necessarily related to a violation or a

conviction. >> thank you. i also handled domestic violence cases for many years, started the first domestic violence unit in kansas city and when i began that unit in the '90s, the detectives told me, well, you know, we really can't do these cases because victims won't come forward. victims refuse to testify. so why are you doing this? why are you making us go through the motions of trying to prosecute domestic violence? and i said, well, we better shut down the homicide unit. and they looked at me plablankl. i said we don't have victims in homicide cases but we manage to put a case together based on an investigation as to what occurred, based on witnesses' testimony that witnessed the event, based on physical evidence, based on 911 call. one of the biggest problems you all have at large is this notion that you all can sit back and wait to see if there's, in fact,

a criminal prosecution and conviction, and i think you all know fundamentally the pressure that is brought to bear on that victim from the moment an arrest is made or from the moment the team finds out. because many time, you all know, you have a lot of off duty police officers that are huge fan and they work for you all. when they find out one of your guys are in trouble, i know this for a fact because when i was a prosecutor i got the call that chris carter was involved in something in westport, a big famous chief player and i immediately heard from the team. about what i should and shouldn't do with cris carter. before i'd even heard from the police department i heard from the team. so what we really have to do here is look to see what you are doing independently to investigate these cases. and independently determine what the facts are because that's how the nfl got if trouble, mr. vincent, is you didn't see it.

roger goodell didn't see it as his responsibility to ask the question is there another tape and i need to see it before we do punishment. there was not a process in place. let me give you one example. i think we should say for the record, major league baseball commissioner bud selig has never sanctioned an mlb player for domestic violence. never. in 22 years. now, teams have. but at the commissioner level, that has never occurred. and i'm going to go through one example. francisco rodriguez. and this is based on -- by the way, i found all this just googling around on my ipad last night preparing for this hearing. this wasn't prepared by my staff. anybody could do this that just looked into rodriguez's record that's written in print. in 2005, based on sworn court testimony, he put a young lady by the name of diane pena, he

hit her so hard she was hospitalized in venezuela. he then convinced her to move to the united states with him and in 2010 he assaulted her father at the mets stadium, pulling him out of the family lounge. at the time, carlos beltran said, well, this is bad. we all have problems at home, but you need to keep it at home. he was prosecuted for that. and during the prosecution of that, by order of protection entered to not contact the young lady of her father. he violated those orders of protection. this is in 2010, violated those orders of protection. was convicted of the assault of her father and given one year anger management. he then goes on to milwaukee brewers and in 2012 he's arrested, a 911 call at 2:40 in the morning and his girlfriend is huddled in a closet at their home and tells everyone what has

occurred -- excuse me, that's my phone. -- tells everyone what has occurred, they arrest him. she has -- there's staff there at the home who is also from venezuela. so what happens? the case is not prosecuted because guess where the victim and the housekeeper went? to venezuela. he then becomes a free agent and back in 2014 he's back at milwaukee pitching and pitches in the all-star game and nothing has ever happened to him in terms of baseball. now, i know i've taken all my time, but i wanted to get that story out there. what i would like for the record, and i'm going to stick around for another round if the chairman is willing to do it because i want to know from each of you how serious is your league about an independent investigation into the facts or how content are you to sit back and go, well, maybe she won't go through with it, maybe she won't come forward, and if there's not

a conviction, we're off the hook? thank you, mr. chairman. >> thank you, senator mccaskicc. oh, no, the votes start you think at 4:10? sorry, schotts. >> my question is for mr. vincent. we know commissioner goodell reisn'tly changed the nfl's domestic violence policy to require a six-game suspension for first offenses. we also know that after he changed that policy, mr. goodell personally called ray rice. what was the content of that conversation? >> i wasn't aware of him calling mr. rice. >> this has been widely reported, and my understanding is that it was to reassure him that this would be applied prospectively rather than retroactively. and you're not aware of this? >> no, sir. >> i'd like to offer you these questions and you can get back to the committee, because my question for you about na is is

this normal? does the league consider this appropriate? does the commissioner as a general proposition interact directly with players who are subject to disciplinary proceedings or was this a one-off. i think it goes to the culture of what senator heller spoke of in his opening statement, get the player back on the field. your financial incentives are based on getting the player back on the field. i found it odd and i found nothing in your procedures that would indicate that it was appropriate for the commissioner of the football league to call an individual player to reassure him that everything was just fine. >> senator, i will investigate and get any information back to you. >> thank you. the nfl's handling of domestic violence is illogical, in my opinion, especially when you look at the strict treatment of athletes who violate the drug policy.

take josh gordon. mr. gordon was suspended for an entire season for testing positive for marijuana during the off-season. this imbalanced treatment actually happens all the time. espn analyzed cases and found -- a players found guilty of domestic violence between 200 and 2014 the analysis showed in 88% of the cases the nfl suspended players for only one game or not at all for domestic violence while in comparison in 82% of substance abuse cases the nfl handed out suspensions of four games or more. does the league consider that to be an inconsistency that has to be corrected going forward? >> yes, sir, senator. and that's one of the things that we've been looking at, that we've been evaluating. i think now our staffers, the commissioner, when you learn the complexities the and the severity of child abuse and domestic violence and sexual assault, we fail in that area to punish, to hold one accountable.

i know recently in the players association's most recent proposal, and this is one of the complexities that we have, when is it the appropriate time the take someone off the field? the most recent proposal said you need a conviction. we strongly disagree with that. we strongly disagree there needs to be a felony or conviction for us to remove someone off the field. >> where are the owners in all this? i know we've sort of touched upon this issue. but it seems to me in particular with the nfl, a lot of the leverage is with the individual teams and a lot of the difficulty is with the individual teams. the teams are represented, if i'm not mistaken, at this table. i'm wondering what leverage you think the nfl can exercise with respect to its actions with the owners. because certainly in the ray rice case, the problem was system wide but in particular with the baltimore ravens as an organization. and i'm wondering how those interactions are going.

i think senator heller are referring to the collective bargaining process. but really a lot of the challenges that the financial incentives of the owners are to get the player back on the field and figure that the fans will forgive them in the end. >> yes, in our last two owners meetings, we have one coming in the next few weeks, is the uniformity, to make sure we're consistent with penalty process. >> so what leverage are you prepared to exercise in your actions with the owners? because i understand that by revenue, the owners are bigger than the league, and i'm wondering what you're prepared to do to try to get the owners to participate in this system of accountability? >> we're looking at all options. one of the things when we start talking about club accountability, maybe the removal of draft picks. you know, you have to do things to really hit the club, to hold the clubs accountable, but all things are on the table. we're discussing all options to make sure that everyone's held

accountable, the player, the staff, local law enforcement that's working with the team as well as the clubs themselves. >> thank you very much. >> i'm going to go vote. is that a quorum call? i can't see. it has not been called yet. who is next? senator walsh. >> this question is for you. you and your wife founded the safe at home foundation to educate young people about domestic violence, proactive approaches to end the cycle of domestic violence your association are critical. thank you for you and your wife for takie ining that on. preventing domestic violence before it starts and what can be incorporated from your foundation into the leagues? >> well, i just feel our safe at

home foundation when we first started the foundation, we were deciding on which way to approach because growing up in that environment i really didn't find out until later on in life that a lot of my insecurities came from what was going on in my home when my dad was abusing my mom. and having been a child growing up that way, i was lucky. i get to play baseball. so i had a place to hide. not a lot of youngsters are that lucky. so when we first started, i went to a middle school and started talking to youngsters, not about baseball. i said we'll talk about baseball in a minute. but i want to explain this camera crew behind me because we were going to have our first gala. and in speaking to the youngs r youngsters about what was going on in my home, i looked out there and six or seven of them are shaking their heads like this. in other words, we struck a nerve. we have a counselor in each one

of our rooms. we named them after my mom, margaret's place. we let the kids know that, first of all, it's not their fault and they're not the only ones going through this. when i grew up i thought i was the only one. i was embarrassed to share with anybody. we had a number of -- as i said earlier, close to 50,000 youngsters that have come through our programs, we have peer leadership programs. we just don't reach enough kids. that's my issue for me. i don't believe they're bad kids. i think kids do bad things. and you know, just from my experience with the attorney generals defending childhood task force going around and listening to so many different gang members, tribal community, you realize how many different layers of domestic violence or violence period that there are, and what we try to do with these youngsters that come through our program is to make them think that their future, make them understand their future is out

there. it's not like when they leave school and they're sort of helpless, just go with the first strong personality they see. we educate them to the point of making them feel pretty good about themselves. >> thank you, senator walsh. >> thank you mr. chairman. >> excuse me. >> one thing i wanted to note up front is that all of you are here, we're presh yachtive that all of you are testifying today, but commissioner goodell, commissioner seal ig, commissioner silver, commissioner bettman were all asked to be here. i do think it's veesleent that e of them were able to be here today. it does say something about where does the level of commitment come?

because i think they should all be here today. while i'm appreciative that you've been willing to appear in their stead, it does say something about how big of a commitment is there good to be on this and that goes to the leaders as well to take responsibility for what happens here. i want to associate myself with the comments of senator mccaskill because you do need to establish an investigative process for these cases that do not result in criminal conviction. and this is imperative because you have to hold yourselves to a higher standard, and the bottom line is that in many of these cases victims are not going to come forward because of the financial pressure that they face, the social pressure that they face and the terror that they face, but that does not alleviate your responsibility to get the facts, to look at the evidence and to still impose discipline even if a victim is

too terrified to come forward. in the same regard, i wanted to follow up on senator where one was flown to another country. i believe that as you look at your policies, this sanctions should be as severe for this type of witness tampering as it should be for the underlying violent acts. because that's what this is, witness tampering. and that, if you put those sanctions in place, will make very clear that if someone is a victim of sexual violence that neither the coaches nor the players, nor anyone else should be interfering with their ability to come forward or

interfering with the way they need to feel safe. i wanted to ask specifically a follow-up question on an issue. as i look to you, ms. roberts and ms. patterson, one of the things i'm concerned about as i listened to the testimony today that in terms of the players side of this, that they not hide behind the collective bargaining process or agreement when it comes to basic responsibility for not committing crimes. because this is what they are, crimes.

crimes of violence against women, sexual violence against women or as we have seen in some instances violence against children. and so as i look at -- i want to use an example, ms. roberts, the recent situation of the imposition of discipline against jeff taylor on the charlotte hornet player. i understand he received 24-game suspension for a conviction for domestic violence for beating a girlfriend. and what i saw was the union's complaint that that suspension was excessive. as i understand it, the player himself has accepted this

suspension. i have to say your response or the union's response to say that this was excessive, to me, highlights the problem that we're facing. and it's disgusting to me that you would say that that's excessive. what do we do in those situations? why do you believe that was excessive? and if we're going to get at this issue, this has to be the players and the responsibility of the officials in the league and the owners and everyone has to have a hand at this. so i'd like to know what you were thinking or not you particularly, but the union. >> i'm happy to answer your question.

let me be clear. the players association was not for one second suggesting that some punishment was not warranted. of course, it was warranted and we expected the commissioner to impose punishment and he did. our position was simply that we have a cba, and we have a disagreement about this, that had precedent to indicate that was an excessive punishment. the commissioner when he imposed the punishment acknowledged it was a significant departure from prior punishments. so again, our position was that the cba required us to collectively bargain if there was going to be imposition of punishment that belined the cba. having said that, the player was never discouraged from accepting responsibility. it was his right to grieve or not to grieve. he chose not to grieve. i said to him to his face and behind his back and i'll say it again, we absolutely endorse his decision to take responsibility for what he did and the matter has been closed. my only point, senator, is this. while we all agree, and we do all agree, that this is very serious business, and we need to take it seriously, we don't believe that we need to, at the same time, abandon due process. and that's the only point. that doesn't mean 24 games may not be appropriate. it meant within the cba, it did go beyond the scope.

i don't want you, senator, or anyone to assume that the national basketball players association does not take this seriously. we do. i have spent the last two weeks visiting with 9 of my 30 teams. i intend to see the rest of them in the next few months. i make clear to them that we will not tolerate this kind of conduct. it's not the nfl problem. it's our problem as well. i don't want our position on the jeff taylor matter to confuse our commitment to making sure that this thing goes away. my final point is this. >> i'm sorry, your time is over. >> then i guess i won't. >> senator blumenthal is next. i'm going to go vote. i'll be back and let's just work it out. we have to keep it going. >> thank you, mr. chairman, and thank you for having this hearing. i want to join in expressing my admiration for your proceeding in spite of the obstacles that have been raised. we have some sports heroes here and we have some professional legal heroes and i'm grateful to each of you for coming to talk to us today. but i want to talk about the people who are not here, the owners. and in a certain sense, they are the bosses. they are going to be the ones who make the ultimate decision. let's just talk the realities here and the financial reality

is that words and promises are a lot more difficult than action. and i'm looking for a way to impose accountability beyond a hearing, beyond negotiations and accountability that means something in dollars and cents. right now, the professional leagues represented here are not only the object of public scrutiny, they are the beneficiary of huge benefits in the form of tax breaks, subsidies for teams and stadiums, as well as chief among them, the antitrust exemption. today i am proposing that we end the blank check to the leagues, the antitrust exemption that has enabled the leagues to successfully negotiate together as no other corporations in the united states would be permitted to do under an antitrust law, for literally billions of dollars. that antitrust exemption should be contingent on doing the right

thing, really acting, not only talking about acting, but doing it. by acting, i mean investigating comprehensively and aggressively, imposing sanctions as a consequence of that investigation, adopting a due process that has been so sorely lacking and mr. vincent is the reason why the league was so embarrassed because there was no process and maybe most important looking forward and really it hasn't been mentioned here, aid to the organizations and groups that provide assistance to the survivors and victims of domestic violence within your leagues, in your families and across the united states. i want to thank mr. torrey for his example, because i think men have a vital role, which is the reason why your players can be such role models, such positive role models for others and why the leagues can be such positive role models in providing tangible financial assistance, which you have not yet done for all the talk here to the advocacy groups and organizations that are so pivotal in fighting domestic violence. so i'm asking for a commitment that you will support this accountability and that you will support the groups that assist victims and survivors. in the interest of time, i'm

just going to ask is there anyone here who would not make that commitment? by the absence of a response, i'm going to assume that you would agree with me that that kind of commitment is important and necessary. you've begun doing it, but i'm not asking you to continue what you have done, but for a substantial increase in that assistance to the hot lines and the shelters and all the service groups, and i hope that you will all join in that commitment. let me ask, mr. vincent, what is the time line for you for the league to adopt a process for imposing punishment within the nfl? >> the commissioner had stated in his earlier press conference

that he would like to have a new policy in place by the super bowl. that would be the latest. >> and what is the process that will provide for owners to approve that process? >> next week we actually have our owners meeting where we will begin to talk about some of the things that we have learned. we heard much about the process, accountability, so we're hoping to have within the next two weeks a real clarity and a position on where we are as far as a firm process, a consistent and clear process moving forward. >> the bill that i have proposed would sunset professional sports league antitrust agreements

under the 1961 sports broadcasting act and the comparable provisions for the mlb one year after the bill's enactment. it would authorize a commission to congress regarding the league's behavior and it would allow congress to reauthorize exemptions every five years based in, in part, on commit mentes to aid public service organizations. how much is the nfl willing to commit to aid those organizations?