Suspended NASCAR driver Mayfield faces new charges

CATAWBA, N.C. – Former NASCAR driver Jeremy Mayfield was hit with new criminal charges as he fights his suspension from the racing circuit.

Indictments by a Catawba County grand jury released Monday charge Mayfield with three counts of possessing property stolen from businesses, and a fourth charge of obtaining property by false pretense.

The indictment accuses Mayfield of possessing goods stolen from three companies, including a sofa, love seat, and other furniture from DEA Ventures Inc. and more than $1,000 worth of personal property belonging to Red Bull Racing Inc.

The indictment alleges the offenses took place around the time law officers raided his Catawba home in November.

Mayfield, 42, was charged then with possessing 1.5 grams of methamphetamine. Detectives from neighboring Lincoln County said they also found about $100,000 worth of items taken from businesses in that county.

A Washington, D.C.-based attorney representing Mayfield after the November raid did not return a message seeking comment Monday.

Mayfield was suspended from NASCAR after failing a random drug test at Richmond International Raceway in May 2009. He was in the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond last month to argue his lawsuit seeking reinstatement as a NASCAR driver should be heard by the courts.

A lower court judge dismissed Mayfield's suit in 2010 because Mayfield had twice — as a driver and an owner — signed documents in order to race that waived his right to sue.

Mayfield reacted to his suspension by suing NASCAR, its owner, Brian Zachary France, and the drug testing company for defamation, unfair and deceptive trade practices, breach of contract and negligence.

Mayfield has argued that a combination of over-the-counter allergy medication Claritin-D and the prescription medication Adderall for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder led to the positive test and that NASCAR's testing system was flawed.

Since being suspended, Mayfield has faced judgments against him in excess of $2 million for failing to pay bills, and he owes another $109,000 in property taxes. Mayfield also faces foreclosure on his 388-acre property.