Minnesota Senate Bill Would Increase Penalties Against Those Who Attack Sports Officials
A bill in St. Paul could stiffen penalties against those who attack sports officials during games in Minnesota, something those within the sports world–and at the state capitol–say is getting to be out of control.
“I think we see it in our daily lives more often than we should,” said Senator Heather Gustafson (DFL-Vadnais Heights), the author of the bill. “These aren’t just a couple of things that are randomly happening around the country. Just here in our own state we’re seeing it quite a bit.”
Gustafson’s bill would elevate charges against anyone who assaults a sports official to a gross misdemeanor.
“(The law) gives it a little bit more teeth,” said Gustafson, who said she’s seen the behavior first-hand while attending her daughters’ softball games over the years. “I’ve seen it go to threats. ‘I’m going to do this when this is over,’ or following refs out to their cars after,” she said. “It’s not okay.”
A bill in the Minnesota Senate would stiffen penalties for anyone who attacks a sports official.
Joe Piket has been a Minnesota State High School League official in baseball and basketball for 30 years, and he said he’s noticed a change over those few decades.
“There was a time when parents kind of kept quiet, coaches kind of ran the show,” said Piket. “(If) we had any conflict on a court, it would be with a coach. Parents, over time, have kind of become emboldened to be more vocal and way more demonstrative about their displeasure about what’s going on on the court.”
Piket said he’s learned how to block out overt criticism the best he can while he’s on the court.
“If you get a bunch of people who are all yelling at once, that becomes background noise, you don’t hear that that much when you’re on a court or a field,” he said. “It’s that one off that person that’s yelling and nobody else is and they’re sounding a little angry and you’re starting to feel a little threatened, then you get some concerns: “What’s my safety play here? What’s my escape route?’”
Gustafson and Piket both also worry that the ratcheting tension and threats of violence are what keep others–particularly teenage athletes–away from wanting to be sports officials.
“If you’re unable to find people to do this job because they don’t feel safe doing it, and then if you look at this job and its being an umpire for a little league game, we’re at the point where something needs to be addressed,” said Gustafson. “We’ve sort of taken away, too, a sort of really nice gig for some of our high school players who could give back to the sport, make a little bit of money. Make something like 50, 60 bucks a game, and they don’t want to do it. They don’t feel safe doing it.
Piket said he can’t interest his son to continue working as an official, either.
“These younger officials are learning the craft, they’re learning how to do this, and every mistake gets magnified, and it’s just not worth it to them,” he said.
Gustafson hopes to advance the bill at least into a hearing in the Senate Judiciary Committee.
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