Tom Cable abuse allegations too much for Al Davis

(01-18) 21:20 PST -- First came accusations of workplace assault and domestic violence. Then came an allegation of girlfriend visits to the team hotel, along with multiple lawsuits.

Why did Raiders owner Al Davis fire head coach Tom Cable? He spent a half-hour counting the scandalous ways, all while new Raiders coach Hue Jackson and his family sat and watched the spectacle unfold at his introductory news conference Tuesday.

"Tom had been told earlier in his career that he could have been fired without pay for the wrath he brought on the Raider organization for supposedly accepting (his) treatment of women," Davis said. "He knew he was through."

Davis made the firing official two weeks ago. He reserved his public wrath for Tuesday's media gathering, even as Cable was named Seattle's offensive line and assistant head coach a world away.

Cable could not be reached for comment. That left Davis to give his unchallenged version of what went wrong this time.

"He lied to me," Davis said.

In the end, this all goes back to where Cable's woes first began: Raiders training camp in Napa, August 2009. That's when Randy Hanson - then a low-level defensive assistant - emerged from a meeting with Cable with a broken jaw and accused the first-year coach of assault.

Napa police declined to press charges after a lengthy criminal investigation. The Raiders declined to discipline Cable after their own investigation.

Even the NFL passed on punishing Cable, and that was after ESPN aired a Nov. 1 report about three women who accused Cable of domestic violence.

Davis gave Cable a second chance, but made it clear he would not tolerate another problem.

"I asked Tom Cable at least three or four different times, 'Is there anything else that we have to deal with relative to the accusations made against you?' " Davis said. "I was never told about the three women."

Even then, Davis chose not to fire Cable after last season, when the Raiders went 5-11 - a record Davis mocked him for Tuesday.

Cable seemed to be in the clear. Davis was keeping him for the final guaranteed year of his contract, whether he liked Cable or not.

Then, a letter in June sent Cable back into full spiral.

The Raiders got a letter from the attorney for Marie Lutz, an ex-girlfriend who accused Cable of physical abuse in the ESPN report. The letter included a copy of a lawsuit that named the Raiders as a co-defendant with Cable.

The lawsuit contained the allegations she made to ESPN. It also included new accusations, including one Davis said "was too much for me."

Lutz alleged she traveled with Cable on team road trips and stayed with him the night before the game, according to Davis. He said there is a team rule that forbids players from being with their wife the night before games. That rule apparently extends to head coaches and girlfriends.

"Tom was asked about it and refused to answer it," Davis said. "He brought her on trips when the team's playing on the road. He's the head coach and this is the guy who's talking about focus, 'We've got a job to do, we've got a game to play,' and he's there flying in friends so they can be with him the night before the game.

"All of this stuff goes a long way against my wishes, against my way of living, against the Raider way, and I just wasn't going to take it anymore."

Except, Davis did - for almost seventh months. He wanted to see what came of the Hanson lawsuit - he has now gone to NFL arbitration. He wanted to see what came of the Lutz lawsuit - she settled with Cable out of court, Davis said.

Davis didn't want to promote Jackson in the offseason because he didn't know enough about him. And he didn't want to change during the season for fear it would disrupt a potential playoff run.

"I just didn't think we needed another uproar at that time," Davis said.

So, he fined Cable $120,000 over six weeks to cover potential legal costs, fired him after the season - and then skewered him one for the road.

E-mail David White at dwhite@sfchronicle.com.