Philadelphia police are investigating an argument that escalated into gunfire at a youth football game in the Roxborough section of the city.
Officers were called to the Al Pearlman Sports Complex on the 600 block of Port Royal Avenue just before 2 p.m. Saturday.
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Police were told a disagreement escalated between attendees and one of the game referees, and a shot was fired.
Parents of players told Action News on Monday night that the referee was the one who fired a shot into the air.
According to Philadelphia police, no one was hit or injured.
Parents said the coaches sprang into action when the incident occurred.
“They got the children together. They took them into the building. They locked the doors,” Daryl Butts, of Roxborough, said. “They made sure that everyone was safe and going to be ok before they proceeded to do anything else.”
Philadelphia police said Monday afternoon that no one has been arrested in connection with the incident.
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Before Monday’s practice, parents had an opportunity to hear from coaches about the situation.
Speaking about the meeting, Joe Jacquinto, of Roxborough, said, “They have an action plan and safety plan in order to make sure all the kids are OK, if God forbid something else like that were to happen moving forward.”
Parents told Action News that includes a plan to keep track of all the players, as well as possibly having a safety officer at future games.
Some parents said they want all referees to be vetted in the future.
“The referees are just as involved with our children as the coaches are,” Butts said. “We need to make sure we are dealing with people who can think correctly and don’t have any type of past that’s going to interfere with the kids’ growth at the field.”
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The president of the Roxborough Eagles Athletic Association told Action News he cannot comment because the police investigation is ongoing.
(Correction: A previous version of this story identified the location as Hagy’s Field.)
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: Sports.yahoo.com
