Bill Analysis
Under
current law it is considered assault punishable by a Class B misdemeanor, if an
offense is committed by a person who is not a sports participant, and if they
assault a person who is a sports participant either while they are
participating in their sport, or if they assault them in retaliation to the
participant’s performance. This bill would clarify some language, and attempts
to close an existing loophole whereby auxiliary volunteers, coaches, sports
officials, and adult athletes are exempt from this punishment due to their participation
in the sport. If this bill passes, an assault by a sports participant who is
also an athlete, and younger than 19 years of age, would not be punishable by a
Class B misdemeanor.
Vote Recommendation Notes
This bill clarifies some language related to the assault of offense and would prevent student athletes who are in the heat of competition from being punished by a Class B misdemeanor while also making it clear that adults such as coaches and referees do not qualify for the exemption. For protecting student athletes while holding adult facilitators appropriately accountable we support HB 1110.
