Do Official's Duties Extend to Peacemaker?

[LRZ]

This year, PIAA issued a POE, consistent with the change allowing assistants to come onto the court to help break up fights, stating that head coaches should have plans in place if such situations were to arise. This implicitly places the responsibility to control fights on the coaches and assistants, not the referees. So intervening is not in my job description.

Nonetheless, a near-fight? I might step in to prevent escalation, more spontaneously than as a considered intervention.

An actual fight, fists flying or people on the ground? No, I don't referee ice hockey.

[JRutledge]

I will step in between players or be a presence, but once they start trying to fight with blows, I am out. I will let teammates and coaches deal with the group. Because all it takes is you to grab the wrong kid and someone punches them and now you are responsible for their injuries (yes we have had a lawyer who is an official state you could be liable for injuries). I will do everything to stop it without touching someone.

Peace

[Freddy]

[BillyMac]

Originally Posted by Freddy

Thanks Freddy, nice video.

When it comes to confrontations between two players, I'm doing the same that the official in your video did, try to step in between the two 'knuckleheads".

If they start throwing punches, or if other players join in, I'm outta there and backing away, trying to remember numbers.

While teachers and coaches may have some limited legal responsibility to break up fights, basketball officials, as far as I know, have no such legal responsibility.

But then again, as I've often said in the past here on the Forum, here in the United States, anybody can sue anybody, at any time, for any amount, for just about any reason, and one being sued will have to hire an attorney, and their billable hours aren't inexpensive.

[JRutledge]

I even think in the video the official was too much in a hurry to report the foul.

Peace

[thumpferee]

Originally Posted by JRutledge

I even think in the video the official was too much in a hurry to report the foul.

Peace

Jump (held) ball!?

[Kansas Ref]

Thanks to you all for the kind guidance provided on this issue; furthermore, you'all have cited some other issues that I/we had not considered that pertain to the issue. However, I must say that in retrospect the cop who was there at the gym and did not even try to breakup the fight was terrible optics for law enforcement. Now after reading what you'all have written, perhaps the cop was wisely avoiding any "liability". But the optics were terrible: I mean there was a grown-azz man who is a cop and he could not even intervene with trying to separate two teen-agers from fighting?
I must admit that when I see [the security] cops at my games standing in the corner munching on popcorn and drinking coke, I cannot help but to feel like I'm fending for myself with no backup.
But hey, I digress, and am venting now--this all occurred about 6 weeks ago yet I still cannot let it go/get over it! After reading you'alls comments I now have a "path forward", thank you Forum!

[JRutledge]

Originally Posted by thumpferee

Jump (held) ball!?

You are right. He did not immediately give the signal so I thought maybe he had called a foul. I still think he needed to not leave the scene so early. But that is also understanding the temperature of the game as well.

Peace

[BillyMac]

Originally Posted by SC Official

I think grabbing players and potentially letting an opponent get a "free shot" is a nightmare waiting to happen.

Originally Posted by JRutledge

... to grab the wrong kid and someone punches them and now you are responsible for their injuries (yes we have had a lawyer who is an official state you could be liable for injuries).

True.

Happened here in my little corner of Connecticut (actually the high school has since moved over to another local IAABO board) about thirty-five years ago.

The details from long ago are a little fuzzy, even though the official in question (and one of the coaches involved) was a friend of mine. To stop a fight involving many players and coaches, the official grabbed a coach, who was throwing punches in a player/coach confrontation, which gave the player a "free shot" at the coach, breaking the coach's jaw.

The attorneys made a lot of money as this situation ended up in both criminal court and civil court for a few years.