Spectators at New Hampshire sports games will now have to watch their emotions under a new law aimed at protecting sports officials from harassment and assault.
Gov. Chris Sununu signed Senate Bill 327 Friday, a bill which provides penalties for crimes committed against sports officials, including first or second degree assault, criminal threatening, and stalking.
The offender would be subject to the punishment prescribed for the underlying offense, as well as a fine of up to $1,000 and a prohibition from attending a sporting event in the state for up to a year for a first offense. Multiple offenses could trigger a lifetime ban.
The bill applies to any “participant,” including spectators, coaches, administrators, or players, at an amateur or professional athletic contest in the state.
High school athletic directors praise protecting officials
Dave Morissette, athletic director for St. Thomas Aquinas High School in Dover, said some people “cross the line” when watching games. While schools try to quell tempers, he hopes the law acts as more of a deterrent.
“Sports are emotional, and I think sometimes people forget that they're trying their best as well,” Morissette said. “All of us, administrators, coaches, kids and parents can do a lot better job being nicer to officials, and we all want to work on that and be the best we possibly can be.”
Aaron Abood, athletic director for Winnacunnet High School in Hampton, said he hasn’t personally witnessed any extreme harassment. But he said it’s always good to protect officials – something school officials currently try to do. He said the school has a parent and spectator code of conduct, and that Winnacunnet has banned spectators from the grounds before for using improper language or acting inappropriately toward an official.
“I would think we would continue with that,” Abood said, when asked about enforcement of the new law. “Maybe we post some of these things on signs outside or in the gym. But certainly, if we ever were to have an assault, we would, you know, look to the police.”
State Sen. Lou D’Allesandro , D-Manchester, the prime sponsor of the bill, said he is “very pleased” the governor signed it. He said enforcement will need to be worked out, but that it’s an “important first step.”
“It was sorely needed , and it’s a way to deal with a problem that’s manifesting itself all over the country, and it’s becoming very dangerous,” D’Allesandro said. “We gave them a portion of a statute that would allow them to enforce it, so we’re well on our way to making good things happen.”
Sununu signs 53 bills into law
In addition to SB 327, Sununu signed several other bills into law Friday, including a bill to preserve New Hampshire’s iconic 603 area code and to rename a section of Route 127 after Chief Bradley Haas, the officer killed by a gunman while working as a security guard at the New Hampshire Hospital.
He did not sign SB 311 , a bill relative to property tax offset for the town of Hampstead, but it will become law without his signature.
Sununu also vetoed two bills: HB 1187, which would have prohibited equipment lease agreements for building or facility improvements, and SB 318 , which, among other things, would have changed the manufactured housing installations standards board.
This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: NH sports officials now protected by law from assault, threats
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