A spectator at a youth basketball game in Fort Wayne, Indiana, allegedly heckled and attacked a referee on Saturday.
Video footage posted on Twitter by Jeff Lytle shows a man in a hat approaching the referee on the court. The footage cuts to the men punching each other and tumbling to the ground.
The man was ejected from the game. The Fort Wayne Police Department said authorities did not receive any calls from the basketball tournament on Saturday.
Right here in Fort Wayne Indiana. Why is it ok to attack a official? When is it going to stop? This is why we don’t have officials! pic.twitter.com/NmF4cB7eiS
— Jeff Lytle (@jefflytle_37) May 21, 2023
The incident occurred during the Gym Rats Basketball Tournament for eighth grade teams in a game between Team Robinson-2027 PINK and Bluewaters Hurricane, Fox News reported. The man was reportedly the father of a player on the Bluewaters Hurricane team. Team Robinson won the game, 48-7.
“Right here in Fort Wayne Indiana. Why is it ok to attack an official? When is it going to stop? This is why we don’t have officials!” Lytle tweeted.
Since 2018, around 50,000 youth sports officials have quit, the Post-Searchlight reported. Many referees point to the toxic environment as parents hurl insults and slurs, and sometimes even commit physical assault.
Northeastern Indiana Officials Association president Joe Rudolph said it was “disheartening” to see the official violently attacked when he’s just trying to ensure a fun and fair game for the young players, Fox News reported.
“It’s hard because we’ve reached a level where we’re all fed up,” Rudolph said. “We’re tired. We’re tired of the treatment of officials. When fans take it personally, and they want to either come on the floor or make threats from the stands, that’s when things really change, that’s when things get pushed over the line, over the limit.”
There are 22 states with laws on the books which criminalize physical assaults on sports referees, according to the National Association of Sports Officials. Indiana does not have such a a law.