The ‘Referee Three’ – that being California referees Raul Caiz Sr., Raul Caiz Jr., and Wayne Hedgepeth, have filed a $100 million dollar racial discrimination claim directed towards the California State Athletic Commission and its executive officer Andy Foster.
Among the claims made in the filing, it is alleged that of the approximate 47 state licensed fight officials in California, 33 are minorities which make up 70% of the group, yet the majority of assignments to championship bouts are provided to the remaining officials, who are of Caucasian descent.
“The system used by the California State Athletic Commission in assigning boxing officials, including referees and judges, to championship fights is not based on merit but on the sole discretion of an Executive Officer, Andy Foster,” reads the claim.
The forthcoming lawsuit will cite violations of the Unruh Civil Rights Act (California Civil Code 51), California Government Code Section 11135, California Civil Code Section 43, and intentional infliction of emotional distress, and other related causes of action.
The three referees are represented by John Sweeney of the Sweeney Firm.
“The claim that we filed against the state of California requests damages in the amount of $100 million,” Sweeney said in an interview given to the Los Angeles Sentinel. “We believe that this is a multimillion-dollar lawsuit once the lawsuit is filed,” said Sweeney, who is a protégé of famed attorney Johnny Cochran.
The CSAC has yet to comment publicly on this matter.
This article cites a piece on this subject posted on fightopinion.com