The movement to restart high school sports in California has reached a new level of intensity as two student-athletes and the parent-driven advocacy group “Let Them Play CA” have partnered in a lawsuit against state officials, including Gov. Gavin Newsom, and San Diego County.
The suit, announced Friday by the San Diego-based firm of Wingert, Grebing, Brubaker & Juskie, LLP, requests an immediate order for restrictions to be removed and high school sports in the San Diego County to begin right away.
“California is one of only three states that currently prohibit high school sports teams from playing competitive games,” the firm wrote in its news release. “This long-overdue relief is sought on the basis that the current restrictions on playing high school sports violate the athletes’ right to equal protection under the law because the State and County have allowed college and professional teams to play the same sports while adhering to reasonable health and safety guidelines to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
“High school students have been denied the opportunity to abide by these same safety guidelines and have been unfairly denied the chance to play the sports they love.”
There are differences between college and pro sports and high school sports.
Colleges and pro athletes are tested at least multiple times per week and, as the Bay Area News Group reported last week, have dedicated people to handle contract tracing and ensure everyone follows state and county protocols. College athletes also have been placed in a “bubble” environment.
High school sports, as one doctor told this news organization, cannot mimic that.
The San Diego suit was filed on behalf of two football players — Nicholas Gardinera, a senior running back at Scripps Ranch High School, and Cameron Woosley, a senior running back at Mission Hills High School.
“While we recognize the Governor and County have a difficult task managing this pandemic, the overwhelming evidence is that high school sports are safe for the participants, add real value to the students’ lives, and do not pose a risk of transmission of COVID-19 to the San Diego community,” Stephen C. Grebing, one of the attorneys representing the students, said in the firm’s news release.
“If the State and County believe that it is safe for San Diego State to play football, it must also be safe for Scripps Ranch High School and Mission Hills High School to play football.”
The suit comes in the same week that the high school sports community in Santa Clara County suffered through an emotional rollercoaster as county officials presented stricter youth sports rules than those in the state’s guidelines. The county reversed its rules more than nine hours after the news broke.
