Ref attacked at HS playoff game tonight

[dammitbobby]

Sure hope he’s ok

Also hope he presses charges

https://twitter.com/_7santiago/status/1334683075603795969?s=21

[dammitbobby]

Last I heard, he got up and was walking around.

Also: not a playoff game, just playing for a playoff spot.

In a situation like this, what are the crew’s options? Can they say ‘see ya, we’re out’ without repercussions? Or is there an obligation to finish the game? At what point does game administration become involved? If they walk, is it a forfeit o up to the administrators to hash out?

Genuinely asking. I hope I am never in a situation such as this.

[Clear Lake ref]

Wait for the one attacked, with police. Then walk off field to locker room and summon coaches.

A discussion will be had.

[HLinNC]

I note that the player was not immediately arrested, all the news indications are he was "escorted" out by police.

Is this a situation that the jurisdiction requires the victim to personally press charges?

[AlUpstateNY]

I note that the player was not immediately arrested, all the news indications are he was "escorted" out by police.

Is this a situation that the jurisdiction requires the victim to personally press charges?

Whatever the necessary legal procedure is required, it needs to be followed. Any attack on any game official needs to be taken to the fullest legal conclusion, we EACH, OWE that to each other.  There is simply, ABSOLUTELY NO EXCUSE TOLERATED.

[Clear Lake ref]

UIL needs a 1 strike policy at this point.  He wasn’t a 1st time offender.

[ElvisLives]

Whatever the necessary legal procedure is required, it needs to be followed. Any attack on any game official needs to be taken to the fullest legal conclusion, we EACH, OWE that to each other.  There is simply, ABSOLUTELY NO EXCUSE TOLERATED.

Right on, Al.

[ElvisLives]

UIL needs a 1 strike policy at this point.  He wasn’t a 1st time offender.

That requires no previous incident. He's charged with the highest degree of assault possible; he's suspended from school for as long as can be legally permitted; and banned from any extracurricular activity forever. And, he pays for any medical expenses that may be incurred by the official.
And the official should seriously consider civil action against the player, and, perhaps the school, since I saw other sideline personnel charging toward the official and NOT trying to stop the offender. Other sideline personnel were charging toward the opposing team players, before the official was so viciously knocked to the ground.  What the heck is going on at that school? At the very least, the school district should consider punitive action against the school, as well.

Inexcusable.

[zebrastripes]

Unfortunately too often this behavior bypasses the legal system because "he's just a kid" or "he got caught up in the heat of the moment." 

[Official_21]

That requires no previous incident. He's charged with the highest degree of assault possible; he's suspended from school for as long as can be legally permitted; and banned from any extracurricular activity forever. And, he pays for any medical expenses that may be incurred by the official.

And suffice it to say, he has probably thrown out any chance of playing college football.

What an idiotic thing to do. Just glad the official is okay and suffered no serious injury.

[HLinNC]

bypasses the legal system because "he's just a kid" or "he got caught up in the heat of the moment.

I worked in the legal system.  Bypass?  That would be the prevailing theory IN the legal system.

[Covid 22]

Speaking as an R that takes blood thinner.   A hit like that would be very expensive and possibly fatal.   Even if I got up it would require a trip to the hospital and and MRI to insure no cranial bleeding. 

That "kid" (all 250# plus of him) needs to spend some time in jail.   

It looks like the coaches that ran toward the other team were trying to keep the white team away from the problem area and the kid.

I know this kid is the exception but it has been my experience that a lot of the reactions and actions of the kids on the field is a reflection of the coach's attitude toward officials.   

[Etref]

Just read that the Edinburg school board met and voted to forfeit the playoffs

[dammitbobby]

That's a good, responsible step from the school district.

Looks like he's been charged with class A assault (believe it's misdemeanor)  https://www.themonitor.com/2020/12/04/edinburg-high-football-player-attacked-referee-charged-assault/

[ElvisLives]

Just read that the Edinburg school board met and voted to forfeit the playoffs

Good decision, from a punitive perspective for the coaches/administrators. The sad thing is, for administrators, they have had their hands tied with regard to discipline ever since the 80's. Discipline in public schools today is next to nothing, and that is either legislatively or judicially determined, not left to the local school boards, etc., as it was in better times. I have witnessed students (in school) talking back to teachers, ignoring their directions to return to class, etc. Not surprising a coach doesn't have as much influence over his players as in days past, even if he wants to exert discipline. Even more sad, is many of those coaches don't care about this kind of behavior, except to the extent that it affects their win/loss record. I have heard on many occasions when we have called a UNS on a player, his coach will just yell at us that we need to use better judgment (i.e., don't call fouls on my players - let them do what they want - they are just kids). See what happens?

Despite this decision, I would bet a game fee that this kid will be back on the field next year. That is, unless he gets thrown in jail for something even more egregious between now and then. Scary to think of anything more egregious, though.

[ElvisLives]

Looks like he's been charged with class A assault (believe it's misdemeanor)  https://www.themonitor.com/2020/12/04/edinburg-high-football-player-attacked-referee-charged-assault/

Good. I'm not bailing him out.

Edit: My research shows that a Class A misdemeanor is the worst of the misdemeanor offenses, with the greatest potential punishment (jail time up to 1 year and/or fine). 

[HLinNC]

THIS where it will get interesting, legally.

Duron, the team's "star defender," was suspended in the 2019-20 soccer season for an incident similar to the one that took place on Thursday.

Plaintiff's attorney- "You mean he's done this before??!!


https://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/texas-high-school-football-player-who-hit-referee-charged-with-assault-team-removed-from-playoffs/?fbclid=IwAR2KlBQRteaVkfva6C5io7YW9p4RzbgWPKp-l16HVU463rQUBcTr0tarSgY

[yarnnelg]

In Florida, the result is an immediate arrest. He would have been cuffed before he reached the sideline with the coaches. Felony charges for assaulting a "Game Official" More states need to implement the same.

The year the law was passed, every fan, player and coach received a copy of the new law and it's enforcement ....

For the next two seasons were were escorted on and off the field during half time. On our first escort, cop beside me says "Excuse me, I have to go and explain to someone's mother why I can arrest her for screaming at the crew."

When they were waiting for us to come out of the locker room ....I said "Did you tell my Mom to cut it out?" 

[AlUpstateNY]

THIS where it will get interesting, legally.

Duron, the team's "star defender," was suspended in the 2019-20 soccer season for an incident similar to the one that took place on Thursday.

Plaintiff's attorney- "You mean he's done this before??!!


https://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/texas-high-school-football-player-who-hit-referee-charged-with-assault-team-removed-from-playoffs/?fbclid=IwAR2KlBQRteaVkfva6C5io7YW9p4RzbgWPKp-l16HVU463rQUBcTr0tarSgY

Really sad when "centuries" old experiences are ignored... When really bad behavior is ignored (excused, tolerated, disregarded),it's only going to repeat itself.  Consequences, especially those that leave "scar tissue" are usually effective and lasting teachers.

[Joe Stack]

TASO needs to have a much more proactive stance on this incident than they did on the one in 2015. Then, they let the school districts change the narrative to the official involved rather than the players and I think the kids even ended up on TV (correct that if wrong) spreading their nonsense about the guy's alleged racial words. Turns out the guy's best friend was an African American! Then, the school districts wanted the whole thing to just "go away," and UIL was fine with all that, so it did.

If this kid did have a history of this, and he was still on the varsity field, the school should face some serious repercussions. This CAN NOT happen again.

As far as what to do if this happens in your game? I'd say dealers call. If it happened in mine, obviously it would be fact dependent. Hell, I was ready to walk off the field a few weeks ago when the teams themselves couldn't behave; it wouldn't take much to convince me to leave if my crew's safety was in doubt. You get together and discuss it -- but it MUST be focused on safety concerns and not retribution. As much as I'd hate seeing a crew mate and friend go down in a manner like this, we MUST remain professionals. If we were to leave the field to spite a team or to cause a team harm, then I'm afraid we've committed a violation of our own standards. Not as big a violation as violence, so don't get me wrong here.

What I thought was interesting about the hit on the R was that the other team came after the player immediately after the hit. They may have wanted any excuse to go after the guy but they did react immediately in defense to the hit on an official. That's got to make us feel at least partially good about the situation.

[Joe Stack]

Is this a situation that the jurisdiction requires the victim to personally press charges?

Eventually, yes. Most everywhere (in the US) the DA is not going to go forth with a case involving violence, outside of maybe political hot-button cases like domestic violence, without the victim pressing charges. Even with DV cases, if he victim is hell bent on not testifying (he or she really can't get out of it if they are called) or downplaying or outright lying (something no one will be able to prove), the DA isn't going to waste his or her time. Too much other work to do and cases to prosecute.

However, most people don't know that you can not be arrested in Texas without a warrant unless the arrest falls under certain situations. The most common exception is a peace officer actually viewing the offense, so ANY offense he views, even if it is a Class C and would offer no jail time as a penalty, could serve as the basis for a legal arrest. Incidentally, forget the term false arrest, at least in Texas. No such thing. There are legal and illegal arrests. False arrest is common law torts, and I'm not even sure it is a valid civil cause of action in Texas -- it may be but under another name. But I digress (sorry).

Anyway, the officers working security that saw the incident could very well have placed the player under arrest if they had jurisdiction and if their department allowed it (and I'm sure it was yes to both). That is why you hire police officers for security. I don't know if they did, but at this point it doesn't matter. He was charged and now has to surrender or he will have a warrant issued. If he appears, he'll be fingerprinted and make a bond. He may or may not be arraigned -- not sure at that level of criminal offense. But either way, if the official does not want to proceed with the charges, they will be eventually dropped. Hopefully it will at least be after the player is out the 15 percent fee for the bond and attorneys fees.

There are also civil causes of action the Referee has -- against the player and in my opinion, (POSSIBLY) against the coaches and school district. Going against the district is tricky as they have statutory immunity to some claims, another reason why that needs to be abolished. He may or may not want to go after district employees. But that's the thing I don't like about immunity: say there's an issue as to what the school district did and a coach or AD did. The district might get off Scott free but the employee doesn't have such immunity. They will, however, get the benefit of the school district's legal defense team if it comes to that.

I say take them down. This crap must end. NOW.

[bama_stripes]

Do we know why the player was originally ejected?

My decision on whether or not to forfeit and leave would depend in large part on the reaction of the coaching staff and teammates of the offender.  If I felt they were truly contrite and that this was solely the action of one rogue player, I’d likely continue the game.

[Etref]

From what I read, late hit on QB and then an unsportsmanlike

[justbill13]

Do we know why the player was originally ejected?

My decision on whether or not to forfeit and leave would depend in large part on the reaction of the coaching staff and teammates of the offender.  If I felt they were truly contrite and that this was solely the action of one rogue player, I’d likely continue the game.

This.  In addition, I would give everyone on the crew a voice in the decision.

[HLinNC]

My decision on whether or not to forfeit

In addition, I would give everyone on the crew a voice in the decision.

NFHS has 3 rulebook forfeits and this doesn't fit any of those. (I realize Texas is NCAA).  I'm going to consult administration, Head Coaches, and whoever is in charge of security on scene along with the crew.  The wiser course of action would be to suspend the game if a decision was reached to stop and let the governing body sort it out.