The soccer field this happened on was less than 5 miles from my home. This really was close to home. I have been the US Army for a long time ...when a fellow soldier dies it is tragic but we volunteer and know the risk, but to see a fellow official die on the field because someone was upset over a call is utterly pointless

. It is a sad day in Utah sports

I am at a loss...

It doesn't matter where you're from.

This is exactly the issue in a nut shell...I hope the heads of the youth league take notice but I am afraid that since the parents are paying the freight for their kids to play and the leagues are money makers that hesitancy to deal with out of control parents exists!

(Utah Referee talking about his brother who referees in Utah)

My heart aches today for the loss of a fellow official. Ricardo Portillo's family deserved better.

On a related issue, my brother was accosted at an AAU basketball game on Saturday by the site supervisor, who was upset that games were behind and he blamed the referees. As a result of the passing of a fellow official, and the marked uptake in violent behavior towards referees, my brother is composing what will be a very strongly worded letter for distribution to all press agencies in the state calling for increased protection of officials and openly condemning those in leadership positions who have sat by and let this escalate. We are asking that any official willing to join us in the campaign to protect officials in all sports, at all levels, and in all organizations in the state to please contact us. We are also looking for those willing to contribute to the content of the letter by way of sharing experiences they have had. We both realize this will not be popular. But neither of us can stand idly by any longer while officials are told to just have thick skins and to suck it up. It's not part of the game. Dying is not part of the game. If you feel this is important enough, would you please forward this to officials so that those that want to may contribute or sign the letter.
Thanks,

Update
 

Guilty plea
 

Max of 3 years??

That's just not right.

*I commend your noble efforts. I was reffing a USSAA set of games a few months ago, one of the parents accosted me after the game and said "thanks a lot" in a manner that was noticeably dissatisfied with the outcome--they had lost by 2 pts in a close game. I told the male parent "your team just missed a lot of free throws". He scowled at me. But I don't care, I'm not cow-towing to a fan. I understand the stereotype of officials being "composed", but I had to make a stand. I think word got out because seemed like folks/fans went out of their way to act 'nice' to me since.

You were accosted? Physically or verbally?

If it was verbal, that's really not the same thing as a referee being attacked. We have a board member who was part of a game where his partner was body slammed by a player. Another of our long time members was hit by a water after the game, before he could get off the court. Those are comparable situations. Irate parents after a summer game? That's standard procedure.

And if it was verbal, don't respond. I know it worked for you this time, but you'll get far fewer headaches if you just ignore the idiots. More bad can come than good. Responding like that is the quickest way to escalate a verbal situation to a physical one.

If you were accosted physically, you definitely shouldn't have responded. You should have called 911.

I don't believe a word TM says.

Tell me about it. I can't think this was the first time this kid ever lost his temper while participating in a sporting event. I'm all for forgiving mistakes but there are limits. I can't wrap my head around a max of three years for leaving kids fatherless.

I don't know what is the "right" amount for something in this realm. I guess the 3 years is enough to force recognition of the wrongfulness of the act, but short enough to not completely derail the young person's life.
He caused a death of another person and there is no way to repair that, but if our society is to be progressive, then this citizen needs help and training to become a better person in the future. Perhaps he will go on to save or vastly improve the life of someone else someday.
I recall being 17 and punching an opponent in a soccer game because he kept holding onto my shirt and I finally got sick of it. What if he had been seriously injured or died? I had no intent of harming him. I was simply angry and frustrated at the moment and lashed out physically in response to the unwanted physical contact done to me. I got a red card and a further one game suspension. Could I have gotten 3 years in prison? Should I have?
My point is that there obviously need to be consequences for the action, but the question is how harsh. I have not doubt that this 17 year old was upset and wrongfully resorted to violence, yet I also have no doubt that causing serious injury or death was NOT his intent or desire.

I can buy that he did not have the intent to kill the man. But he obviously did have the intent to harm, even seriously, the official when he struck him in the face/head. If he lost his temper and wanted only to lash out, then a blow to the stomach would serve that purpose. This kid went for the head.

Do I want him locked away forever? No, of course not. But 3 years max in a juvenile detention facility is not enough for what he did.

Just to clarify, the kid was charged with homicide by assault. Under Utah law that is a zero to five year sentence. Even if he were charged as an adult he would only gotten about the same sentence when evertything was said and done...The prosecution felt that it did nt meet the standard for manslaughter