Well, that's when those of us who do rec league games have to tighten our belts and handle the situation. If parents get unruly, have them removed. If they refuse to go peacefully, call the sheriffs. For rec leagues, institute a policy of "umpires are hands-off after a game" with certain penalties prescribed.

Sometimes, we do this to ourselves by not addressing this behavior.

I agree in virginia assault on a sports official carries a heavier penalty than assault in general.My reason for bringing this up is this: these parents holar and scream everything they can at the umpires and when they are removed they get even worse and shout that its "for the girls!" the irony that statement carries along with it is extrordinary and the parents themselves as well as these coaches should be ashamed of how they treat authority figures on the field and ashamed of how they model respecting authority to their kids. Depending what age the kids are they still may (psychologically speaking according to famed psyco analyist for child developement Piaget) model this behavior...which in turn perpetuates the problem.

Parents often turn into complete idiots anywhere near an athletic field.

A few years back, Men's D FP State Championship. A team was using a non-rostered player and it was known. The manager was told numerous times that if a team protests eligibility, his team will forfeit. The manager was adament that he was told by someone else on the tournament committee that it was okay. I'm UIC, TD was state commissioner.

Well, sure enough in the "IF" game of the championship, the opposition protested the eligibility of two players, one was the ineligible player. I called the umpires off the field and the TD and myself addressed the protest and the game was forfeited.

The TD and myself were threatened and called names most Navy SEALS would find offensive. As I was exiting the field behind the TD, a man with his son (around 7 years old) must have saw a little bit of a grin on my face and confronted me. He wanted to know if I thought the forfeit was funny. I told him I thought it was hillarious that a bunch of grown men were acting like juvenilles and sad that with his young son standing by him, he supported such a reaction. Reality light bulb went on!

But he wasn't done. He wanted to know how I thought they should act after being screwed over by ASA. Told us we should have warned them first. That's when I informed this poor b@stard that the manager WAS told numerous times what would happen including right before the game started.

Deer in the headlights stare. He just couldn't believe that considering the way the team reacted. Funny thing was that the ineligible player (Arena Football League player for Las Vegas) didn't say a word. He knew it and played anyway.

Yes, athletic fields just have a weird touch on adults in the area.

Unfortunately, in Pennsylvania, assaulting a sports official apears too often to carry a far lighter penalty than assauting somebody in general.

And NCASA said "Sometimes, we do this to ourselves by not addressing this behavior." Yup, agreed - nothing quite like sticking it up the *** of those who have "X" team in the next game.

In CA it is a separate misdemeanor crime that caries that same weight as any other similar crime. There are no additional penalties, even though CA has a law.

Wow, color me almost impressed.

It is just amazing how these people treat authority figures and how it translates to the kids. I bet that 7 year old kid in his/her next game will mouth off and be disrespectfull to an umpire bc his/her father did it so it must be ok

Big enough. . . I widen the strike zone inside and out about 1 to 1.5 ball width. . . .top to the armpits. . . .bottom just under knee. . .. but the problem is, nothing was even close. Although the coaches agree to widen the zone. . .when I call it, they are the first to complain. . .GO FIGURE