BLOUNTVILLE, TENNESSEE - Tony Stewart won't face criminal assault charges stemming from an accusation by a fan that the NASCAR driver shoved her at an August race in Bristol.
The Sullivan County grand jury declined to indict Stewart after hearing a report on the sheriff's investigation following the Sharpie 500 Winston Cup race Aug. 24, District Attorney Greeley Wells said.
``I consider the matter to be closed,'' the prosecutor said.
Sheriff Wayne Anderson said earlier this month that one of his officers saw Stewart and the unidentified woman in the pit area at Bristol Motor Speedway. The sheriff said the woman was authorized to be in the pits and wouldn't say if she was injured.
``Just as I've contended all along, I did not assault anyone and I'm relieved to know a grand jury has come to the same conclusion,'' Stewart said in a statement.
``While I'm glad to have this matter behind me, it's heartening to know the fairness in which the legal system handled the case, specifically all of those associated with the Sullivan County sheriff's office,'' he said.
Stewart, who is third in the points race, is on probation with both ASCAR and The Home Depot, the sponsor of his No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Pontiac, for punching a photographer who tried to take his picture following the Brickyard 400 in Indianapolis on Aug. 4.
NASCAR fined the 31-year-old driver $10,000, and Home Depot fined him another $50,000. Stewart also said he would seek counseling to manage his anger. ``This was my heart attack, my wake-up call,'' he said at the time.
Stewart finished last season on probation after slapping a reporter's tape recorder away and then kicking it under a truck. He also was involved in a shoving match with NASCAR officials last season.
Wednesday
April 30th, 2025
11:01PM
