A suite of new laws took effect today, including an effort to prevent the harassment of refs in amateur and high school sports, and an expansion of judge’s abilities to order chemical castrations.
Metairie Representative Cameron Henry’s law would allow officers to remove, and possibly arrest people who threaten physical violence against amateur refs, but he says that’s not really the point of the law. “Hopefully it won’t come to that, hopefully, it is something where the officer can use it to deescalate the situation, get the parents to calm down, and let wiser heads prevail.”
Jail time and fines may be a possibility if you’re arrested under this law.
Henry says he brought the legislation on request from his local playground, which was tired of dealing with raging parents.
“Ten and eleven-year-old flag football games or baseball games, where parents are threatening to beat up a high school kid referee over a call when it’s supposed to be a friendly game of flag football.”
The law does not apply to college or professional sports environments.
Marrero Representative Patrick Connick’s bill would allow judges to sentence those who commit sexual battery to chemical castration. He says previously that wasn’t an option. “There’s other crimes less heinous than this that allow for chemical castration, but when it involves the molestation of a juvenile under the age of 13 that was not in there.”
Connick says he was surprised to hear about the loophole when he was contacted by a local judge who said the option was not available in his case.
“I was contacted by a judge in Jefferson Parish who had a case where the victim was a 13-year-old juvenile who was molested, and the perp was charged with sexual battery.”
