UPDATE: Pistons-Pacers Brawl

I still cannot believe that fans are allowed to rush the court after college basketball games in the wake of the Pistons-Pacers brawl. Sadly, I feel it is only a matter of time before an altercation ensues. The only reason it hasn't happened yet (and the reason it may not) is because college arenas do not sell alcohol.

NBA teams, on the other hand, have set out to prove that arenas can have effective security to control exuberant crowds. After hiring consultants and working for two months, the league has revised its arena security policy. The changes primarily focus on alcohol and the presence of security, believed to be the two main causes of the November 19 brawl. Alcohol sales must be cut off before the fourth quarter and the NBA wants to limit both the size (max 24oz) and the number (max 2 per customer) of beer sold. The NBA also called on teams to create drunken driving programs.

On the other end, the league has created a Fan Code of Conduct, which requests that fans not cuss or make obscene gestures, not have any obscene gestures or phrases on signs or their clothing and sit only in their ticketed seats. It is unclear what "request" means, especially in arenas that are publicly-owned, and thus could possibly run afoul of the First Amendment. Chances are good, though, that the only fans that will be disciplined are those that can justifiably be detained for disorderly conduct.

Back to the Nov. 19 brawl, lawyers for the Pacers players that have requested separate trials for each of the five men involved in the incident, arguing that the cases all involve distinct incidents even though they occurred in the same place.

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