Boxing Judges Suspended

 

 Maybe we need to see more suspensions for hotly disputed decisions... or find out what kind of bias is built into the process and how judges are chosen.

One disputed scorecard earned three New Jersey boxing judges indefinite suspensions and no clear route back to ringside - NYPOST.com



Sacrificed
 July 9, 2011: three judges suspended indefinitely after working the junior middleweight fight between Paul Williams and Erislandy Lara at a ballroom in Boardwalk Hall at Atlantic City.

Four days after Williams was awarded a controversial majority decision that drew boos from most in the crowd, all three judges — Bennett, Donald Givens of Linden, N.J., and Hilton Whitaker III of New Jersey — were put on indefinite suspension by Aaron Davis, the commissioner of the New Jersey State Control Board.
 

In announcing the suspensions, Davis said in a statement, “we feel that we did not provide our best officiating on July 9.” 

Davis did add there was no evidence of any corruption on the part of the judges.

Nearly 11 months later, the three judges remain suspended ... 

There was outrage over the decision. HBO broadcaster Bob Papa told his audience, “This is a joke.”

Four days later, Davis announced the unprecedented decision to put the judges on indefinite suspension.

Davis admitted the suspensions have been “long,” but offered no hint of ending the suspensions.

“Those tests are not that hard to pass,” he said. “I’d like for all our guys to pass the test with no problem. I’d like them to have some more ongoing training before I fully reinstate them. Then, after training, I’d probably like them to shadow a judge and come back with those scores.”

Suspending judges is nearly unheard of in boxing, but Davis defended his actions.

Davis said all the judges are “good guys,” but hopes the suspensions send a message to other judges in New Jersey and regulatory commissions around the country.

“We can’t be satisfied with subpar performances,” he said. “We don’t accept that from fighters. We shouldn’t accept it from our officials either. If people know they’re going to be accountable for their actions, hopefully they’ll take better actions.”

Read more: http://www.nypost.com/p/sports/boxing/sit_in_judgment_tr29jCEHqRjtVpZxSuJiKN#ixzz1xLALXULB