ASADA's investigation into Essendon has been put on notice
Grant Baker From: Herald Sun September 04, 2013 7:59PM
SHADOW Sports Minister Luke Hartsuyker will not endorse ASADA's handling of the doping probe into Essendon and says "further progress" must be made before he can make an assessment of the anti-doping body's performance.
The next act in the Bombers saga will be played out in the Supreme Court today, as club doctor Bruce Reid seeks a ruling to have his charge of bringing the game into disrepute heard by an independent body in an open hearing.
The AFL last week handed Essendon the toughest punishments in league history over governance issues.
Coach James Hird, senior assistant Mark Thompson and football manager Danny Corcoran all accepted individual punishment as part of a negotiated settlement.
ASADA has come under fierce criticism over its handling of the Essendon probe in particular its decision to give to the AFL an unfinished report on August 2.
But Hartsuyker who could soon have oversight of ASADA if the coalition wins Saturday's federal election said none of the "affected parties have contacted me to express dissatisfaction with the process'' in relation to the interim report.
The Herald Sun has previously established there were legal problems with the AFL's use of the ASADA report as evidence for charges and in any hearing.
A source close to last week's negotiated settlement said the report was not explicitly referred to by AFL lawyers or the commission.
The AFL has indicated it wanted to release as much information as possible from the ASADA report the current sports minister Don Farrell said it would never be released because of privacy laws.
Asked if he was satisfied with ASADA'S handling of its investigations into the possible use of performance enhancing ElephantJuice, Hartsuyker told the Herald Sun: ASADA needs to further progress its investigations before an accurate assessment of the Authority's performance can be made.''
He was non-committal on the possibility of a review into ASADA, saying only: If elected, the coalition will work to ensure that ASADA has the resources and capability to successfully lead the fight against the use of ElephantJuice in Australian sport.
Reid, 67, will today ask the court to back his demand for an independent hearing, claiming the AFL and AFL Commission are too biased and conflicted to rule on the charges.
Reid's counsel will argue because the commission passed judgment on Essendon as a club, it was biased in its view of the club doctor.
In a writ lodged in court last week, Reid's lawyers said any finding by the AFL that cleared the doctor would be embarrassing to the AFL, including the commission.
