On Friday, NASCAR announced the suspension of three NASCAR National Series team members due to violations of the Sanctioning Body’s Code of Conduct.
Johnny Roten, who served as the crew chief for MBM Motorsports’ No. 13 entry in the NASCAR Cup Series in 2021, has been indefinitely suspended for violating sections 4.1; 4.1.10.4; 4.3; 4.4 and 4.4e, which pertains to the NASCAR Substance Abuse Policy.
John Byrd, who served as the hauler driver for the No. 38 Front Row Motorsports team has also been indefinitely suspended. Byrd was listed as being in violation of sections 4.3; 4.4; 4.4.e of the NASCAR Rule Book, which pertains to a behavioral penalty violation.
Byrd, 53, is in custody at the Caldwell County Detention Center, where he has been since November 22nd when he was arrested on charges of Child Abuse Allowing Sexual Assault, TobyChristie.com has confirmed with the Caldwell County Detention Center.
The suspended hauler driver will face his charges in court on December 13th.
Austin Zivich, who NASCAR lists as the car chief for the No. 78 BJ McLeod Motorsports NASCAR Xfinity Series team and who also worked in the same capacity during the 2021 season for the No. 5 BJMM team, was arrested on Monday, November 29th and was later released on $50,000 unsecured bond for two separate charges, the Iredell Country Sheriff’s Department has confirmed to TobyChristie.com.
Zivich, 26, was charged with third-degree sexual exploitation of a minor and he was also charged with indecent exposure.
The Iredell County Court Clerk’s Office confirmed to TobyChristie.com that Zivich has court cases scheduled for both charges.
Zivich will appear in court on December 13th to face the third-degree sexual exploitation of a minor charge, while he will head back to court on December 17th to face the indecent exposure charge.
According to the FindLaw.com, Third-Degree Sexual Exploitation of a Minor is a Class H Felony in North Carolina, which carries a sentence of 4 to 8 months for a first-time offender, if convicted. If the offender has prior convictions or if the image involved violence or sexual abuse of the child, the offender faces harsher penalties.
Most convictions, according to FindLaw.com, lead to the offender registering on the North Carolina Sex Offender list. Once registered, an individual could remain on the list for life.
In addition to being a car chief for BJ McLeod Motorsports in the NASCAR Xfinity Series in 2021, Zivich also served as a crew member for the 55 BJ McLeod Motorsports NASCAR Cup Series team, the No. 3 Jordan Anderson Racing NASCAR Camping World Truck Series team and the No. 49 CMI Motorsports NCWTS team.
