|
Actually the card is somewhat right, although the Colts moving did not lead to the initial legal action. Actually it was the other way around. Back in March of '84 Irsay moved the Colts to Indianapolis one day after the Maryland Legislature had the nerve to pass a law allowing the city of Baltimore to take over the franchise by eminent domain.
Fifteen Mayflower vans loaded with all of the team's possessions began moving out of the Colts' office and training facility shortly after midnite because it was feared the franchise would be seized after daybreak. That forced him to make a decision that day.
On June 15th 1984 Associate Justice John Paul Stevens of the Supreme Court refused without comment to block state court proceedings in Maryland in which the City of Baltimore was trying to recapture the Colts. The team had appealed to Justice Stevens to reverse a decision by the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.
But here's where you are right to an extent:
Al Davis' Raiders saga did set the precedence to the Colts story. His longtime dispute began in 1981, when Davis shocked the sports world with a legal victory over the NFL. The league had sued him when he packed up the Raiders and moved them from Oakland to L.A. without its approval.
The presiding judge, however, agreed with Davis' assertion that the NFL's bylaws preventing team relocation violated U.S. antitrust provisions. The judge awarded Davis an $18 million settlement, plus the right to stay in L.A. Davis vs. the NFL also opened the floodgates for other teams to relocate to more attractive markets: the Baltimore Colts to Indianapolis, the St. Louis Cardinals to Phoenix, the Los Angeles Rams to St. Louis, the Cleveland Browns to Baltimore and most recently, the Houston Oilers to Nashville. None of Al Davis' court battles have made it further that the State level, the California Supreme Court.
I'm not sure that it clarifies the trick question because there was no act of Congress involved with either case. Hope I helped more than I clouded it further.
How 'Bout Them Cowboys!
|