New York Court Lets Them Play

First, thanks to Mike and the first of the guest bloggers for picking up my slack as I took a short break. I echo Mike in saying that we are thrilled to have such an impressive line-up of guests over this two-month period.

I am also pleased with the news from New York, as a Supreme Court (trial court) judge has refused to interfere with the outcome of a high school wrestling match. From the law.com story:

The dispute centers on a championship wrestling match in Albany. On March 5, Frank C. Rodriguez and Paul Florio were competing for the state title in the 135-pound division. At the end of the match, Rodriguez, then in 12th grade, was ahead by a score of 7-6. In celebration, he threw his headgear into the air before the official handshake signaled the end of the match.

After declaring Rodriguez the champion and having the combatants shake hands, the referee learned from an assistant referee that the headgear had been thrown and that the athlete had to be punished for unsportsmanlike conduct. The referee assessed Rodriguez a two-point penalty and declared Florio the victor. Rodriguez appealed to the protest committee to no avail, so he took his gripe to court . . . .

Now, you can say what you will about a rule that imposes a penalty for such a harmless violation. But it was clearly the referee's decision to make and not a decision to be overturned by judicial fiat. As the judge wrote:

To establish a precedent of reviewing and potentially reversing a referee's judgment call from the distant ivory tower of a judge's chambers would cause unending confusion in the interscholastic athletic system.

I also have to wonder who was giving the young litigant advice. The ruling does seem unduly harsh, and I certainly would have been livid had I been him, but going to court? Perhaps the better lesson would have been that life is sometimes unfair and you have to make the best of the situation, not run screaming to a judge. The court took this approach and I hope it becomes the accepted rule in conflicts over sporting results.

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