Post Fairfax Reaction: Hundreds of Bulldogs supporters left outside for one of biggest games in school history

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Anonymous aka Pasadena Area Resident??

Otay, gothcha....

Get'em Dawgs-

Once again..you failed to spot my obvious sarcasm.

I don't feel that way. I'm just playing it like i've heard it.

Once again Pasadena Area Resident - IT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH RACE!! pendejo.

O.K. The end

Can't...we..all...just get along...
Why don't we all just call it was racism. That seems to work for "victicrats" in every other situation. Let's just blame it on "The Man" and end this blog!

No Jim I'm not missing the point. Just last month PHS was guilty of two out of the three points you made. As I stood in line to buy my ticket for the Muir game, I saw a group of people on the other side of the iron gates going in the back way. My son and his friends took their time to go to PHS early to purchase pre sale tickets and upon their arrival were told they could not get in, along with many students from other schools. They were told by PHS security to go back to the ASB office the next day and get a refund because they were not getting in. So your only point is you weren't told there was a sell out, so what. Move on Jim and stop crying PHS did it, Fairfax went a step further, it is what it is, over and done with.

One good thing happened you learned a life lesson. Do unto other as you would have them do unto you.

Class of 78

I think you're missing the point.

The real issue isn't even that Fairfax decided to have the game at home. It's a smart move for a team looking to get the best advantage they can. No problem with that.

The problem came from the following

1)Lack of pre-sale tickets
2)Fairfax officials NOT announcing to the crowd that people would not be let into the building until hours later and only making the announcement through the police
3)Letting Fairfax fans in the back door ahead of the fans already there who were told it's "first come-first served.
4) Denying people who had ALREADY purchased tickets the right to enter the game.

I've been to plenty of games over the past 20 years. From LA City, to the SGV, to OC. I've been shut out of some due to sell-outs before and it sucks but there isn't much you can do. The only time I ever got upset was when a Mater Dei security guard at the MD vs. Loyola game last year watched a group of students cut in front of me, and they got the last available seats.

But I've never been to a game where a person who had already purchased a ticket was not allowed into the game after purchasing a ticket.

Again, should it have been at a bigger venue? Obviously. But that isn't the issue in this case and really shouldn't be part of this discussion.

Good post t-radier. I believe this event was forseeable. PHS admin did a poor job conducting such a huge event. Let this be a lesson to all. Yeah, LAPD is no joke. Like you said, they are not going to arrive with smiles. When called upon a possible riot situation, they are trained a certain way. They deal crap on a daily bases that far behind what we have to deal with in a lifetime. In no way, where they going open the flood gates. Please blame PHS & Fairfax admin as they dropped the ball.

This is not about busing or race, the climate of high school basketball has changed and if PHS didn’t know, they should have. I’ve been to 4 high school event where I could not get in. Campbell Hall vs. Taft, The Nike Extravaganza, Muir vs. PHS (at PHS) and the PHS game last Thursday at PHS. By the way many fans that had brought pre-sold tickets were turned away at PHS-Muir game in February so this administration knew what to expect but chose to disregard it. Bottom line is had PHS moved their home game on Thursday to PCC this would have probably forced Fairfax to moved their game. Count your blessing you live in Pasadena. I don't condone any mistreatment by the police however socially Pasadena is a far cry from Los Angeles and you must realize the LAPD have a much different attitude and or approach than we do in Pasadena. It is a testament to Pasadena residents that we can be civil as we were while also being mistreated Thursday night at PHS. I only saw 4 officers and they handled themselves very well, but Fairfax is not Pasadena. There is an old saying "I'd rather be judged by 12, than carried by 6 and when the call went to LAPD there not going to show up smiling. We must realize the police have families and want to get back to them so when they see a crowd of peaceful but angry people they are taught to expect the worst. Their is plenty blame to go around but again we must start with the PHS administration for not taking the lead and being proactive not having the foresight and confidence to move their game even tough the writing was on the wall. PHS administration also put you in that situation but I understand it's easier to totally blame Fairfax because they won and to give some of the blame to PHS would put a wet blanket on our pity party.

For those who say play the game over, you need to realize you weren’t going to dribble shoot or defend in the game so your presence inside or outside didn’t make a difference to the players on the court. So chalk this up to experience, move on as this game is in the books. Let’s celebrate the season it was a great run.

Class of 78

SPORTS EXTRA / HIGH SCHOOLS
Pasadena fans are angry over basketball ticket situation
From Times Staff Reports
March 13, 2007

Angry Pasadena boys' basketball fans have been complaining about being denied access to their team's Southern California Regional Division I semifinal game against host Los Angeles Fairfax on Saturday, when several hundred were turned away.

Fairfax Principal Edward Zubiate said after a group of fans rushed the ticket door trying to get in, Los Angeles Police Department officers locked down the gym at halftime, refusing to allow any fans to enter or exit because of crowd-control concerns.

Judi Edwards, the school's athletic director, said additional police were requested to help control the crowd.

Sgt. Tarriel Hopper of the LAPD said there were no incidents of violence or arrests outside the gym, "just more fans then there was room in the building. Nothing major got out of hand, just a lot of upset people that could not get in."

Zubiate said next season, he would ask the CIF to pay for a larger gym site to handle the crowd.

"I would say I'm not going through this again," he said.

Fans who paid the $9 entrance fee but were never admitted to the game can receive a refund, Zubiate said.

*

— Eric Sondheimer and Mike Terry

Pasadena Area Resident - First of all this has NOTHING to do with busing! Had the eduacation,services, etc been the same at PHS and MUIR, then maybe there would not have been a reason for busing the predomintely all white "good students" students from east Pasadena (PHS) to MUIR and visa versa...As for the "rodiron fences" many schools are closed campus and this is to keep students in and safe and to keep people out (i.e. columbine). The reality is that you sound like a jerk....
This blog is about how people were treated, white, black, hispanic, good student, bad student,TEACHERS, ADMINISTRATION, just everyday people. What Fairfax did was wrong, and they should be reprimended, we played by the rules setup by the CIF, they should also...

there are lots of reasons for a an assumption that the crowd would become unruly, but those are an assumptions, the fact is it was kids supporting their community and it is just another example of un-professionalism of the police. i know its cliche, but these ex-high school bullies who needed a job, should do some serious evaluation and professional training.

This whole thing does not surprise me. Many of the students at PHS are "problem kids". I'm not saying they all are, just many, and it only takes a few of them to mess things up for all.
Any time a school has rodiron fences to open and close its facility, you know that there are issues with students. It's unfortunate but this is all due to the Pasadena School system which was distroyed about 30 years ago with busing that removed students from their own communities to be forced to go to a school accross town. This caused a major exit of "good students" from the public school system. These students now go to private schools because the public schools are just not good or safe enough. That is the reality here.

Major type-o correction from my last post........PHS did NOT resort to RIOT POLICE, but Fairfax DID resort to RIOT POLICE.

i am a student at PHS
i was part of the 250+ left standred outside the gym. I arrived one hour early ( 5:00) to wait for tickets that went on sail at 6:00, PHS had no presail and fairfax had a presail and sold out there promisede tickets and the rest should have been PHS tickets . But my understanding was that they opened up sails to everyone and so some tickets were sold to fairfax and phs. when i came i was so pumped for the game because i play JV basketball and it a fun program were you learn a lot. As i walked to the gym i saw two lines one that looked prodomintaly Pasadena and anothersmall line not sure the affliation when i got in line with the other pasadena fans and waited the line was moving at this point up and when we got close, a man came out with a microphone and told us that they were taking a break from selling. That was the last time i heard an explanation from a superviser. There was no faculty controlling the line the entire time. So we waited we look at our watches it is almost game time 7:00 we are very confused at this point because this break turned into a 2 hour wait . We are standing there (PHS) all very confused and frustrated. At this point the crowd was asking what was going on because we have waited for 2 hours and there was absolutly no explanation. Throght this wait people are getting mad and some people are yelling for a push i had @ very young girls next to me not evn above my hip. I know a push is a bad thing so i tell the crowd to settle down along with many others more than the people who want to push, and that thought quickly evaporated because the few people (like 2 people probably a joke) who thought up the idea came to thier senses. There was never a push. The crowd through out this time is still asking for a reason why we couldnt get in, none givin one either.Then we are still waiting (the game has started) we saw cops and we are all happy that they are here to help us. Then all those cops who showed up ( circa 8) disapeared into the gym. We are standing thereconfused we are still stanging there asking for an explanation. We were not unruly. then i look to the quad and i see cops in complete riot gear to combate a peacefull crowd full of parents, kids, students, toddlers, teachers, and PUSD board members. There is also a helicoppter that was cheered on entry because we thought they were going to help us. The cops tell us to disperse so i go to leave and the copsare as confused as we are. As i am complying a im confroted by an officer wioth his club out and he is yelling and tells me to go one way so i do and then the next cop with his shotgun drawn ( not pointed at me) tells me not to go this way but i tell him that my group is over there and he tells me to go to them (not telling more like yelling). So i am there in the quad away from the maddnes and the helicopter tells us that there is no more tickets ( very first explanation), and i leave. I didnt expiernces any baton beatings because they took place after i left but the people who were not out yet expierenced it.


This is a flashback to the game at phs before the fairfax game. There was presails for both schools PHS and a Cal poly. I got there about an hour and a half early because i didnt buy my preordered ticket. I was told that for the first 45 min. the sails were for cal poly (by phs faculty and police officers) because phs sold their half of tickets. So i waited for a while and watched the preordered ticket buyers get in (both schools) and poly people buy thier tickets. Then for the last 15 minutes it was opened to the phs line and only 50 get in after that and many Phs got turned down. But it was orginized with police and PHS security.


What PHS did that day of poly game was in CIF regfulations and what fairfax did was out of cif rules and should be punished for breaking rules and game should be replayed at a neutral place. With cif officals present to make sure there are no infractions.

Fred- Do PHS and Muir play each other in softball and baseball? If so, when? If not, why not?

In response to PHS Class of 78 about the same thing happening at PHS on thursday is totally wrong. We are not crying about a basketball game. What happened inside the gym had to do with a basketball game. What happened outside had to do with police. We are most disgusted at the unnecessary show and use of force by 100+ riot police with batons and shotguns out. THAT DID NOT HAPPEN at the thursday night's game at PHS, only at the saturday game at Fairfax. Yes, Pasadena turned away many fans once the game was sold out on thursday. But we did so by COMMUNICATING to them that it was sold out. PHS did resort to RIOT POLICE to tell fans it was sold out, but Fairfax DID on saturday. All we needed was one security officer or Fairfax administrator to walk outside and tell us the game was sold out (even though it wasn't) and we would have left. Instead of communicating in a civilized manner, we were barked at by a police helicopter.
The bigger question in this mess has NOTHING to do with they game of basketball. The big question is WHY did the LAPD over-react to an angry but DOCILE group of fans standing in a line??????? There are many answers to that question…but in my gut I am quite certain that race played a part. If 250 angry all-white fans were standing in line at a Beverly Hills High game, you know they wouldn’t send the riot squad and a helicopter. I’m white, and ashamed that our very diverse group of fans were treated with such disrespect. This is California in 2007, not Mississippi in the 1960s or Tiananmen Square, China in 1989. Shame on the LAPD.

PHS administration has only itself to blame, the same situation happened at PHS on Thursday night 03/08/2007. Some fans were in line for an hour and a half to two hours to buy tickets and never got in the gym. My son, daughter and I arrived at PHS about 6:15 and were turned away. The Thursday crowd should have been anticipated as the game on Tuesday was packed out. On Thursday I would estimate PHS turned away 200 to 300 people with police presence. My son asked me on Saturday if I was going to the PHS Fairfax game and I told him "no" because we would not be able to get in and because of the way the situation was handled at PHS on Thursday I sensed trouble, just common sense. Had PHS moved the game to PCC and not been selfish, they would have a legitimate complaint. Also by moving the game to PCC, PHS could have influenced Fairfax to move the Saturday game to a larger site. That did not happen and the fact of the matter is this same situation happened at PHS two days prior. Hindsight is 20/20 but foresight many times is 20/200 and full of fear, so I say to PHS don't cry now you have only yourself to blame. When we had the chance to do the right thing and accommodate our supporters we didn’t do it, so don’t cry when the same wrong doing is perpetrated against us, what goes around come around. The 2006, 2007 basketball season is over STOP CRYING and celebrate a great season for the PHS family.

PHS class of 78

Hi, I would like to remain anonymous. I was invovled in the incident that happened on saturday night at Fairfax High school. What had happened that night was beyond rediculous because so many people were put in danger by the people that were being relied on to protect.
I and some other friends had arrived at Fairfax high school at around 6 pm. yes, we were one of those people who waited for 2 hours intending to support our high school's basketball team but by the way things went we lucked out. when we got to the line to get in it was so long it was curving around the gym and we looked to find some friends at the front of the line. At that time the ticket vendor had a table kind of thing infront of the only door to enter and the word going around was that they arent letting any pasadena fans in because our side was full but there was about 50-100 seats available on the Fairfax's side but they just didnt want us (pasadena fans) sitting on their side. But, on the opposite side of the gym they were allowing more Fairfax fans in because i was told later that night that one of my friends who i have seen in the huge pasadena line sneaked away and was able to get in from the fairfax entrance.
we waited in the front of the line for about 2 hours with the line not moving at all, with angry fans, and it was jam packed, i could barely breath and i was squshed in an awkward position. What we were told was that we were waiting on the Police to arrive to let us in but when they arrived we greeted them with cheers and after that there was no sign of them. after a while some poeple from the front had enough and they forced theior way out of line and went home. As a couple more people left me and my friends found our way to the very front of the line.
When we were in the front the police offiers began to get what looked to be angry because they were telling people to get back and leave because it was "UNSAFE" so the crowd got angry and bagan to push through the door with me and my friends in the very front. the officers began to get mad at us telling us to back up because as we were fighting to crowd to stop pushing we were inching more and more through the door. after telling the officers about 5 or 6 more times that we cannot stop moving forward because everyone else was pushing us forward and also asking for help because we were being pushed against that small table blocking the door and it started hurting me none of the officers cared. Then n officer that was directly infront of me jammed his forearm in my chest then stuck his elbow in my throat and i knew he did it intentionally because he was looking right into my eyes. I took his arm and tried to move it away because i could barely breath and as soon as i grabbed his arm he took my hand with the other hand and twisted it. At that time a female officer pulled the table away and the people who were in front fell in the room.
There were two rows of police with battons ready, and i saw the girl next to me get hit in the head by the female officer and pushed back out. As the officers told us to leave right away my friendtried to leave but when he did a female school administrator slapped him and started yelling at him. While they were argueing an officer was pushing me back out and when i told him i wanted the officer who assulted me's bagde number he would not let me get it but when he was pushing me out i caught a quick glance and caught it, it was 17014.
when i was outside my friend apparently went into the restroom to cool down from the arguement. next thing we know it the officers have himrestrained and literally threw him out the bathroom and out the doors. When we left we asked an officer for the nearest police station to file a complaint and the officer seemed nice but she ended up giving uus directions to thew nearest post office. some help huh?
This was really rediculous because apparently the officers wanted us to back up because they didnt want anyone getting hurt from the crowd. but who was the only people that resulted in violence?
This was very uncalled for from the LAPD and Fairfax High school. i demand an apology from the officer who had assulted me because i know was not right for him to do that to me especially when i asked him for help.

To all that care,

The blatant misuse of power displayed by Fairfax High School and its administration were ridiculous. And looking back at all the twists and turns lead me to believe that the things must have been planned and done intentionally.

Fairfax denied Pasadena High School the right to presale tickets at Pasadena. Why this decision was made? Who knows? Fairfax did contact Pasadena and let them know that their gym held 1400 (the people that were in the gym said this was a very poor approximation) and 700 tickets would be reserved. They even went as far as to have Pasadena fax a guest list. (The guest list was only honored to a point. Many on the list did not get in.)

Many Pasadena fans arrived at Fairfax early to buy tickets and make sure that they got in. Only one person was selling tickets though. There were approximately 800 or so fans that had lined up to buy tickets. As of 5:30 p.m., ticket sales stopped. The fans were told that people that had a ticket were going to be allowed in. The remaining people would have to wait to see how many seats were remaining. Once everyone with a ticket was let in, tickets sales continued for about 10 minutes and then stopped again without explanation.

By 6:00 p.m., the fans outside were wondering when tickets sales would continue. No answers were given. People continued to wait outside patiently. At 6:15 p.m., I called an administrator that was inside and asked why tickets were not being sold. I was told that Fairfax was not going to sell any more tickets until the police arrived to control the crowd. Although the crowd was not unruly, the ticket line had become more of a ticket crowd at this point. To my amazement, there were a large number of people outside that had tickets and were not being allowed in. When this was explained to the people at the door, they still refused to let them in without giving a reason.

At 6:30 p.m., one of Pasadena's assistant coaches came to the door to try to get into the game. The man at the door refused to let him in. A Pasadena administrator and a Pasadena security guard tried to explain the situation to the man at the door, but he still refused to let the coach in. Later, I found out that while people from the front were not being allowed in, there were a large group of Fairfax fans that were being allowed in through a side gate. People inside the gym called and let us know that there were plenty of seats available on the Fairfax side of the court. There wasn’t room left on the Pasadena side. By most accounts, the gym had room for another 150 to 200 people. There were no more than 250 remaining outside.

At 7:00 p.m., I decided to leave the line. The man at the door had removed the tickets at 6:45 p.m. and still was not selling any more. The police still had not arrived and the game was going to start. As soon as I left the line, two police officers showed up. The crowd cheered. (Don't forget, the crowd outside was told ticket sales would not continue until the police arrived.) I asked one officer if he knew when the tickets would start being sold again. He explained to me that the gym was sold out. I let him know that people inside said that was not the case. He went into the gym to see for himself and never came back out.

At 7:15 p.m., the LAPD arrived with about 20 to 25 visible officers. I spoke to officer Vazquez and let him know the situation. I told him that the people inside said that the tickets would be sold once the police arrived. The police arrived, but no tickets. He informed me that the first two officers were school police and they called for assistance. (I have no clue what they needed assistance with. The crowd had not done anything or even moved in over an hour.)

The LAPD moved around, talked to random people present, and then began to leave. While they were leaving, I had a chance to speak to another officer that had a pump shot gang strapped around his torso with extra shells. He was not receptive at all. He explained that he could careless what transpired prior to LAPD's arrival. They were called in to break up a rowdy crowd and that was what they were here to do. (Apparently, Fairfax had no plans on selling more tickets even though they kept saying they would when the police arrived.) I let the officer know that no one had ever said we would not be let in and needed to leave. If that had been explained to the crowd, many, if not all, probably would have left a long time ago. The officer's stance was that they were leaving and when they came back they would disperse the crowd.

Knowing this, and not wanting to become a LAPD casualty, I gathered my friends and attempted to leave. Surprisingly, all the gates were locked and we were not able to leave. (It's funny to me that we were supposed to leave but couldn't because someone locked all the gates that led to the parking lots and the front of the school.) So there, my friends and I stood. Not wanting to be there and not being able to leave.

When the LAPD came back, they were in full riot gear and made no attempt to talk to anyone in the crowd. The helicopter above made the announcement that the game was sold out and the crowd needed to leave immediately. Two officers in riot gear unlocked the gate to the parking lot and people attempted to leave. I, thank God, got out without any incident. Others, were poked, prodded, and hit with batons as they were attempting to leave. A member of the LAPD hit one student, which had not said anything to the officers, in the legs. She did not provoke him in any manner.

Another student, that had gained entrance into the game with a ticket, was thrown out when he went to the bathroom. No reason was given. He was grabbed and forced to vacate the premises forcefully.

From the beginning to the end of this entire melee, I was shocked. Never have I seen a school be so incompetent when it came to hosting a game. There were no security guards, police, or administrators outside to help with the organization of the ticket sales. When things were dubbed out of control, no one from Fairfax came out and told the crowd anything. All communication occurred via cell phone with people inside and people outside. The entire event could have been avoided in a number of ways.

Action needs to be taken. Fairfax needs to face some type of disciplinary actions for not allowing the Pasadena fans in while letting their fans in from a side gate. Fairfax should not have been able to presale tickets if Pasadena was not allowed also. Fairfax should not have called the police and said the crowd was being unruly - which was not true - and then tell the crowd that tickets would not go on sale until the police arrived. The LAPD needs to be held accountable for striking members in the crowd without asking people to leave in an orderly fashion. The crowd consisted of students, babies, parents, staff, teachers, and even board members from Pasadena. The crowd was not rowdy. The crowd was not being unruly. And the crowd would have probably dispersed without provocation if they were told that no more tickets would be sold. Why didn't Fairfax just explain the situation to the crowd?

A very disgusted teacher,

Christopher C. Anderson
Pasadena High School
Math Department

P.S. The LAPD wouldn't even allow our principal in to see the game

fellow bloggers
lets all band together and fight for the cause. We can set up a huge protest in front of the CIF Headquaters and that will show them.

this isnt even about the game. this is about the police brutality that still goes on in this world and i can tell you this honetsly, if it was an Arcadia or Burroughs game, that doesn't have as many african-american students,parents,etc, i honestly dont think that the "riot squad" would've come out and even if they did,they wouldn't of start to hit people for no reason. unbelievable

It is what it is... Pasadena still lost. We can't change anything now about the past, but we can change the future.

If pasadena won, I don't think we would have such a huge discussion. Even if the PHS fans were let in, it wouldn't have changed anything. Fairfax main goal was to contain Ajere and they did, holding him to 6 points.

LA Unified in action. What a disgrace.

Ms. Iverson,

"What took place at Fairfax High School on 3/10/07 was a tragedy."

Don't you think that'a pretty bold statement in this post-911 era?

Was it sad? Yes. But a tragedy? C'mon now.

THe "Almighty" CIF strikes again!!
The arrogance of the CIF is unreal, those are OUR KIDS! in OUR SCHOOLS, paid by OUR TAXES!!!!
This game should be replayed at a nuetral site, and with BETTER officials. The administration at Fairfax are a bunch of idiots! turning away 300+ people, and then calling the police! They shouldn't be allowed to host another game at home next season. Ms. Iverson I and several other Bulldog alumni & fans would love to sign that petion ASAP!!!

Amazing story... CIF should really look into this matter. I'm not a fan of either team, but to see that people were treated this way (elderly citizens to boot) is absurd. The CIF State Regional handbook states for division 1, the host team should be able to support anywhere from 1500-1800 people. Sounds like the gym might have just fell short of that, but regardless, CIF should change this number because you have to think that reporters, interested community members, faculty and students wish to enjoy the game. There should also be rules in the handbook to manage situations like this. This is a tragesty in high school sports and hopefully CIF and those responsible learn from this.

I arrived at the Fairfax school an hour early (I had wanted to be earlier but traffic delayed me) only to find out that they were no longer selling tickets and that there were people standing outside with tickets that they were not letting in. I looked in the back door of the gym and surmised that there were probably as many people outside as there were inside.

The disturbance at half-time and the calling in the riot police was predictable. I am not holding the Fairfax athletic director totally at fault though because Pasadena held the previous game in their gym as well.

I think the CIF should be held responsible. Should not the CIF desire to allow as many students, players, friends, family and fans as possible to experience the glory of these exciting moments in each school's basketball history?

My handicapped son is a PHS alumni and was crushed that we could not get in to the Fairfax game. The game was all he had talked about for days. Goodness, two rounds ago they were playing in front of thousands in the Anaheim Pond, now in the Southern State semis they have to play in an average sized high school gym that probably does not seat more that 1500?

Just based on your write up, I am proud of the Bulldogs and the way the fought to the end. Unfortunately that is all I will ever know about that apparently thrilling game.

What can we do to change this for future years and do what is right and fair for all?

--

Bruce Koch

The Fairfax officials did an absolutely horrible job of maintaining order, prior to Saturday nights play-off game at Fairfax High School, and created an unsafe environment for the fans (primarily from Pasadena) who were trying to purchase tickets. We waited in line for well over an hour and a half (90 minutes), outside of the building, to purchase our tickets. Inexplicably, they stopped selling tickets, an hour before the scheduled tip-off time. Furthermore, to add insult to injury, they refused to allow people with tickets to enter the facility. At no time did anyone come out and address the crowd, informing them of the reasons for the delay. As the crowd began to swell, well over 300 people, things got testy, but there was no violence. In stead of communicating with the people, they opted to call the police (including a helicopter circling above the crowd). The only thing missing was Bull Connor, high-powered hoses and German Shepards. All we wanted was an explanation for the delay. Is this how fans of high school basketball are treated these days?

I left the scene, because it was clear that the mood of the crowd was turning negative. It was highly embarrassing and extremely unprofessional. There were rumors that the Fairfax fans were ushered into another entrance (is this standard operating procedure for a CIF Southern Section play-off game?) and they took up all of the seats allotted for the Pasadena fans. Thus, there were no more seats available. However, even if this was true, the Fairfax officials did not communicate this to the crowd. Dozens of angry and frustrated people turned around and went back home. They should strongly consider having all play-off games at neutral sites. This was a travesty and Fairfax officials should be taken to task for their mismanagement of this event. Pasadena fans were denied an opportunity to support their team. If it requires this level of "home-cooking" for a storied program to advance through the state play-off system, something is seriously wrong with this process. A plan should be afoot to find facilities that can accommodate anyone who wants to attend the game. The state play-off system deserves better and the fans deserve better. Thanks

Raymond Ealy

To whom it may concern,

What took place at Fairfax High School on 3/10/07 was a tragedy. According to the CBS2 News, The Crowd Get Unruly Trying to Get Into Fairfax Game." The crowd was not, as they falsely accused us, unruly. We were rather disappointed, to say the least, at the way ticket sales were handled by the hosting team. The so-called "unruly" crowd was lead by no other than the principal of Pasadena High School, Dr. Evans, who was ushered off the schools grounds by a riot squad of 100 police officers as were grandmothers there to see their grandsons, young children as well as a staff of Pasadena High School teachers there to show support for the basketball players they mentor in the classroom.

That being said. We the students, teachers and parents of Pasadena High School are filing a complaint (a petition is being circulated) against the tournament facilities as tickets sales were not equitable per the rules.

The rules states 7.6.2.1. That the host school has the overall responsibility for ticket control and sales. Due to the short period of time between games and the distances between schools involved, host schools for the quarter and semi-finals are to encouraged to make arrangements with opponents so each school can sell their own tickets with the host responsible for the game financial statement.

Fairfax did not do this. In fact, even people who managed to secure a ticket at the game were denied access to the game and escorted off the premises. During halftime Pasadena coaches Brooks and Tucker were seen at the door trying to allow ticket holders access to the game. It was not as they claim packed nor was the crowd unruly. These false allegations were used to keep out PHS fans who were there to support their team. If the hosting school holds 300 tickets and sells only 300 tickets how could they possible be overbooked. Perhaps it was because as the eye witness report, "the back doors wear being held open to allow Fairfax fans in."

The hosting school has a responsibility to uphold it right to be fair. As it states in the rulebook, "Many individuals throughout the state will get perhaps their first and only impression of your school and community by the actions and behaviors that your team and community will display in the next three weeks." It says the CIF is committed to the principals of Pursuing Victory with Honor. It also sates that as a condition of membership in the CIF, your school has agreed to abide by these principals both in the letters and their intent. It states further we have high expectations as part of your participation.

Ask yourself where is the "Victory with Honor" when the hosting school shuts out fans due to its negligence and the media misrepresents PHS fans with a false portrayal of the fans. At our host games we sold only half the tickets--the rest went to the other as the rules state it should be done.

If there is justice in the world--this game should played again in a place that allows fans of both sides to represent--this was a one sided victory. This is not victory with honor it is rather victory with disgrace as the host school did not abide by the rules of the CIF Championship. Rules can make or break a game--in this case it was the latter.

Thank you for your time and a petion will followed represented by the community of Pasadena,

Ms. Iverson