Essay
Sports are very important in most people's lives and at times they can be taken to the extreme. Players get in the zone and don’t realize some things they do are bigger than the game. naso.org states that “Any person who assaults a sports official in connection with an interscholastic athletic activity may be excluded from attending an activity for up to 12 months”. This means any player in an activity connected to a school is eligible for this exclusion. This can be very good because it provides an incentive for players to think before they act.
This is not the only case where something is done to stop the mistreatment of sports officials. Amnews.com says “mistreatment of sports officials has been an increasing problem around the country, leading to a shortage of officials”. Due to this in Kentucky the good sport bill was proposed and was inspired by real life incidents of mistreatment of officials and this bill was written after a referee was punched and knocked unconscious. This is a beneficial thing in the long run because if officials are constantly mistreated they will not want to come back and officiate any more sports games leading to less and less sports officials around. Without officials competitions cannot take place and nobody wants that.
When anybody is assaulted even if you are not a sports official there can be criminal action or civil action against the assaulter. A criminal case can be brought on behalf of the state against the person if they are arrested and charged with a crime. There is a program in place to help with these kinds of situations for sports officials. According to referee.com “ NASO members who have been assaulted while officiating can receive assistance in finding an attorney and get help with legal fees, medical expenses, lost game fees and wages, travel expenses and other reasonable expenses under $15,500”. This is good because with this bill along with this program in place not only does it allow for a referee to press criminal charges but it also helps him do this by covering a majority of costs to do so.
One bad thing about this bill is that I think there should be a shorter and more severe punishment. A two week suspension from school would be just as beneficial as 12 months excluded from that sport. Although this is a severe subject these student athletes could be losing out on potential scholarships and especially there highschool career in sports. These rules seem a little bit inflexible and for some students could ruin their career. Another bad thing is these punishments could be harsh for a parent. House.mn.gov states “ Misconduct listed in the bill includes: Intentionally interfering the field of play to disrupt a youth athletic activity, and intentionally causing an object to enter the playing surface if that object disrupts a youth athletic activity”. I think that some of these punishments are a bit excessive for something as little as throwing something on the court. Although interfering with a game in that way is wrong, the punishments seem a bit excessive.
Sources:
Paragraph 1- “State Legislation - National Association of Sports Officials.” National Association of Sports Officials, 23 Oct. 2024, www.naso.org/resources/legislation/state-legislation/#:~:text=Minnesota%20Chapter%20128C.,for%20up%20to%2012%20months.%E2%80%9D.
Paragraph 2- Advocate-Messenger. “Editorial: Legislature Can Act to Protect Sports Officials - the Advocate-Messenger.” The Advocate-Messenger, 10 Jan. 2020, www.amnews.com/2020/01/10/editorial-legislature-can-act-to-protect-sports-officials.
Paragraph 3- Referee. “If You’ve Been Assaulted While Officiating….” Referee.com, 29 Oct. 2021, www.referee.com/if-youve-been-assaulted-while-officiating.
Paragraph 4- Legislation Would Throw Flag on Unruly Youth Sports Spectators - Session Daily - Minnesota House of Representatives. 20 Feb. 2024, www.house.mn.gov/SessionDaily/story/18076.