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Earnhardt: the aftermath

By KEVIN KELLY

© St. Petersburg Times, published March 28, 2001

FEB. 18

Dale Earnhardt crashes on last lap of the Daytona 500 and is pronounced dead at 5:16 p.m.

NASCAR president Mike Helton and Dr. Steve Bohannon, head of emergency medical services at Daytona International Speedway, conduct a news conference about 7 p.m. to announce Earnhardt's death as a result of a basal skull fracture.

FEB. 19

Helton, NASCAR chairman Bill France, Bohannon and Daytona 500 winner Michael Waltrip conduct a news conference in Daytona. Safety is the primary issue. "We're always investigating safety issues," Helton said. "There are technologies that are coming forward, different materials, different shapes and sizes of elements used, technology that gives us the ability to understand things better. It's an ongoing development."

FEB. 21

Bohannon examines the Earnhardt autopsy photos.

FEB. 22

Circuit Court judge Joseph G. Will issues a temporary injunction and seals the autopsy photos after Teresa Earnhardt, the driver's widow, sues Volusia County to keep the photos private.

FEB. 23

The Orlando Sentinel files a public records request for Earnhardt's autopsy photos.

Helton, Winston Cup director Gary Nelson, Bohannon and car owner Richard Childress hold a news conference at North Carolina Speedway to announce a broken left lap belt may have contributed to Earnhardt's injuries. "We're not making any changes (for that week's race) unless we find out something in the next 20 to 40 hours that we can specifically do that's a fix and not a detriment to different areas," Helton said.

FEB. 24

Several drivers say they hope NASCAR changes its aerodynamic rules before future races at Daytona and Talladega. The rules, instituted late last season, tend to result in the cars bunched in packs with drivers jockeying for position in a way some drivers believe is unsafe. There were 49 lead changes at Talladega last fall and again at Daytona, where there was a 19-car pileup. "(The rules) need to be altered," Rusty Wallace said at North Carolina Speedway. "We don't need to put that big of a show on. I think what happened at Daytona, in particular with the crashes and what happened to Dale, I hope we can have some concessions for Talladega (in April) to give us some more breathing room."

FEB. 27

NASCAR officials confirm they sent out Earnhardt's seat belt for expert analysis to figure out why the belt separated. Officials said NASCAR would announce the results possibly by week's end. "We'll definitely have something to say when we get the results," spokesman John Griffin told the Charlotte Observer.

MARCH 4

Teresa Earnhardt flies to Las Vegas, where the Winston Cup series is preparing to race, and pleads for public support to help the family keep the driver's autopsy photos sealed. "Releasing the pictures will service only to violate the privacy of our family and integrity of Dale's legacy," she said. "Our family knows that what is happening to us is wrong, and we don't want any other family in America to go through what we're going through."

MARCH 7

The lead investigator for the Daytona Beach Police Department says he is allowing NASCAR to take the lead on the investigation. "I'm not an expert on race cars," Detective Robert Walker said. "I would not know what to look for in the safety equipment. I know the drivers wear shoulder harnesses and seat belts, but I'm no expert on determining what's safe and what's not safe."

MARCH 9

NASCAR releases a list of 52 safety improvements it has mandated in its three major series since 1994.

MARCH 11

Bohannon tells the Sentinel that outside experts should be allowed to examine Earnhardt's autopsy photos to answer questions about how he died.

NASCAR releases a statement in support of Teresa Earnhardt's fight to stop the release of the photos: "NASCAR appreciates the efforts of legislators who are attempting to protect the rights of the Earnhardt family. It is our desire that the Earnhardt family be protected from needless and continued hardship. NASCAR will continue to lend its support to the Earnhardt family."

MARCH 13

Alfred L. Alson, the first doctor to reach Earnhardt after his crash, agrees with Bohannon that a qualified expert should examine the autopsy photos to pinpoint the driver's cause of death.

MARCH 16

Lawyers for Teresa Earnhardt and the Sentinel agree to let an independent expert review the autopsy photos before they are permanently sealed.

MARCH 17

Helton and Nelson conduct a news conference at Darlington Raceway. They reveal that NASCAR had its medical expert -- Bohannon -- examine the autopsy photos before they were sealed. They reiterated that NASCAR recommends the HANS device, a head and neck support system, and said changes likely will not be made to the rules used at Talladega Superspeedway and Daytona International Speedway. "NASCAR's historical approach to handing out information ... is a business decision as well as a decision that is applied to an environment when there are a lot of constituents involved," Helton said. "Our decision, because we have such a broad range of constituents, is to limit that flow of knowledge because we have to go through a barrel of 100 items to find the one that works."

THURSDAY Five days after it said no rules changes for Talladega were imminent, NASCAR announces rules modifications to Ford's rear spoilers and Dodge's roof strip for the Talladega 500 on April 22.

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