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(AP File Photo)

LANSING, MI — Assaulting, battering or encouraging another person to attack a sports official could lead to harsher penalties in Michigan under legislation introduced this week.

A two-bill package, sponsored by state Sen. Morris Hood, would create a new felony class punishable by up to three years in prison for anyone who assaults, batters or encourages another person to assault a referee or coach.

The proposal was inspired, in part, by the death of a soccer referee who was punched by an angry player he had ejected during a match in Livonia last year.

“I had a group of referees from Southeast Michigan come to me, and they were asking for some protections,” said Hood, D-Detroit. “… A lot of them had indicated they’d been followed out of the parking lot or had been harassed during games.”

The player in the Livonia soccer case is facing criminal homicide charges, but under Hood’s proposal, he could have also been charged with an additional felony due to the sports-related nature of the alleged crime.

The legislation would apply to an organized and competitive athletic activity between two or more people, which Hood said would include youth and adults sports leagues.

In addition to a physical assault, persons encouraging an assault on social social media could be charged under the proposal, as introduced. Hood said his goal is to discourage referee assaults before they happen.

“Complaining is fine, but when you’re going in an aggressive manner — which we saw in that soccer incident or can probably see at any kids event or school event or even adult event where people are yelling at referees — sometimes that gets taken too far.”

The legislation was referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee chaired by Sen. Rick Jones, who introduced similar legislation in the House several years ago and appears open to the new proposal — although he wants to study the details before moving forward.

“I do believe that there should be a specific crime if you attack a coach or a referee,” said Jones, R-Grand Ledge. “It’s happened in this state. We need to make sure that people understand that you don’t attack a referee just because you don’t like a call.”

Twenty-three other states already have laws defining assaults on referees as a crime or other rules designed to protect them, according to the National Association of Sports Officials.

Jonathan Oosting is a Capitol reporter for MLive Media Group. Email him, find him on Facebook or follow him on Twitter.