Overview
- Filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina, the case has been assigned to Judge Matthew E. Orso under the federal Defend Trade Secrets Act and related state claims.
- JGR alleges Gabehart synced a personal Google Drive to his work laptop, maintained folders labeled “Spire” and “Past Setups,” and took at least 20 photos of sensitive files covering setups, performance analytics, payroll, driver pay, and sponsor revenue.
- The complaint asserts Gabehart met Spire co-owner Jeff Dickerson and was offered a Chief Motorsports Officer role, misrepresented the nature of that job to JGR, and solicited JGR employees to move to Spire, with at least one making the switch.
- A negotiated forensic protocol is detailed in the filing, with Gabehart providing devices on January 12, files delivered to JGR’s counsel on January 27, and confirmed JGR materials deleted on February 4.
- Gabehart issued a public denial, calling the claims false and saying a third‑party examiner found no proof he shared JGR information; he says JGR declined an offer to review Spire’s systems and that he will file a legal response.