(4-13-22) An email to members of the Iowa City Athletic Officials Association (ICAOA) supports a long-time member, Patrick Weber, who was attacked during a 3-on-3 basketball tournament in Fort Madison, Iowa this past Saturday.

ICAOA (Iowa City Athletic Officials Association) Members,

This is the email I had hoped I would never have to write as your Executive Secretary. By now, many of you have heard of the shameful incident that took place in Fort Madison this past weekend.

Patrick has been an ICAOA member since 2002, and the executive board stands behind him 100%. Patrick needs all of our support. An attack on any of us is an attack on all of us and it’s important that we think of it this way.

Now is the time to let others know how you feel about this issue. Talk to your friends, your local school board, and your legislative leaders. Ask for harsher penalties to be put in place when an official is attacked. Ask for security policies to be put in place to help prevent these attacks from happening in the first place. Please don’t be silent about this.

Most importantly, when you are out working a game, look out for each other.

Thanks,
John (Mathias, Executive Secretary)

Details of the incident….have asked the Fort Madison Police for an update on this incident

Fort Madison police are close to making an arrest as a result of an incident Saturday where an official at a local basketball tournament was knocked out by a parent.

According to Fort Madison Police Capt. Jamie Carle, police were called to the Fort Madison Middle School Saturday afternoon just after 3 p.m. where they found Patrick Weber, an official at the Fort Madison 3-on-3 basketball tournament (the event was a fundraiser organized by Fort Madison High School girls’ basketball coach Tony Sargent.), had been assaulted.

Carle said officers on scene reported Weber was being treated by Fort Madison firefighters and the assailant had left the building.

Carle has since taken a statement from Weber, who’s also a teacher in the Keokuk school system.

Weber told police the parent became vocal at some calls made during the game and, after a warning, the suspect was eventually ejected from the facility. Between games the man then reappeared and confronted Weber who was working on the next game’s bracket at the scorer’s table asking how long he was ejected for, and that’s when the assault occurred.

Carle declined to release the suspect’s name.

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