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NFL: Judge rules against NFL, for Peterson

A federal judge has opened the door for faster reinstatement of Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson, ruling an NFL arbitrator "failed to meet his duty" in a child-abuse case that brought national backlash for the league and widened its rift with the players' union.

A federal judge has opened the door for faster reinstatement of Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson, ruling an NFL arbitrator "failed to meet his duty" in a child-abuse case that brought national backlash for the league and widened its rift with the players' union.

On Thursday, U.S. District Judge David Doty overruled NFL arbitrator Harold Henderson's December denial of Peterson's appeal. Doty said the league cannot retroactively apply its new, tougher personal-conduct policy to an action by Peterson that occurred before the policy was in place.

Commissioner Roger Goodell suspended Peterson through at least April 15 under the new standard. But Doty said in his 16-page ruling that Henderson "simply disregarded the law of the shop and in doing so failed to meet his duty" under the collective bargaining agreement.

The NFL said it plans to appeal the ruling and that Peterson will be returned to the exempt list - which puts him on paid leave - while the process unfolds.

The injuries to Peterson's son, delivered by a wooden switch that Peterson was using for discipline, occurred in May. Goodell's announcement of the enhanced policy came in August.

Later, it was announced that Panthers defensive end Greg Hardy is seeking immediate reinstatement.

Hardy, 26, was convicted last summer on two counts of domestic violence. He appealed and had both charges dismissed Feb. 9 when his accuser couldn't be located to testify.