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In 2004, a crew of five officials was working a football game between Fox Tech and Brackenridge high schools in San Antonio, Texas. [Note that Texas is one of two states in which high school football is played under NCAA rules.] Charles Harpole, one of the wing officials, was running in front of the Brackenridge bench in the area that Federation rules have referred to as the 'coaches box,' observing a play in progress. In NCAA rules, it's referred to as the 'restricted area' and NCAA rules require that it be kept clear while the ball is live so that officials may transit that area unencumbered. In the process of covering the play, Harpole collided with an assistant coach, Terry English, who was standing in the restricted area. They collided at a high rate of speed, knocking both men unconscious. Harpole recovered fully from the incident and has since returned to officiating, but English was left with impaired memory as a result of a grade III brain trauma and was forced to retire from teaching and coaching.
In 2006, the coach's insurance carrier, Midwest Employers Casualty (who provided English's worker's compensation benefits), sued Harpole, the other game officials, and the Texas Association of Sports Officials (TASO), claiming that their negligence was the cause of English's injuries. Midwest argued that the officials failed to enforce the rule barring coaches from standing in the restricted area. They also argued that English was not warned to stay out of the area. TASO was severed from the original suit, and the officiating crew won a summary judgment in trial court, but Midwest appealed the verdict to the Fourth Court of Appeals in San Antonio.
Our own Alan Goldberger filed an amicus curiae brief in April on behalf of the National Association of Sports Officials. In it, he pointed out that Harpole was doing exactly what an official is supposed to be doing. In the event that the trial court's verdict were overturned, NASO added, "nearly all of [NASO's] members do now or will in the future face the prospect of tort litigation concerning any sideline collision, or indeed any collision with a wayward coach, substitute player, athletic trainer, team physician, school employee, security officer, spectator or any other person who may be in close proximity to a sideline at an athletic event."
Thankfully, on June 24th the appellate court affirmed the lower court ruling. Justice Rebecca Simmons, speaking for the Fourth Court of Appeals in San Antonio ruled: "The Referees established, as a matter of law, that there was no evidence that Harpole failed to exercise reasonable care in refereeing the game..." and that "For Harpole to perform the essential functions of his duties as a linesman referee, while the ball was in play, he had to focus on the football field and not look for coaches inside the restricted area."
What does all this mean to us, here in NJ, 1600 miles from San Antonio? Well first, we will have a new Federation rule in place this coming season that requires the coaches to vacate the coaches' box prior to the ball becoming live. And this area will no longer be called the coaches' box, but rather the 'restricted area' just as it is in NCAA rules. This new rule came to be in large part because of the tragedy caused by the collision between Harpole and English and because of the subsequent lawsuit. Secondly, despite the rules in place at any time, everything depends on execution and enforcement, and you can be sure that enforcement of this rule will continue to be emphasized going forward.
For more information, see NASO Amicus Brief.
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