KISSIMMEE, Fla. (WSVN) — An umpire called foul after a parent punched him in the back of the head. Ray Mora was knocked unconscious and he said incidents like this are happening far too often.
A shocking video from after a game ended at a high school in Kissimmee, Wednesday. The man in the white shirt walked up to the unsuspecting umpire and punch him in the head. Mora, a 63-year-old disabled army veteran, was knocked unconscious and players were visibly concerned.
“That individual was not even facing me,” said Mora. “At least the people who I faced when I was in combat, I saw them. I saw them in the distance. I knew they were coming. I was not even prepared.”
Oceola County Sheriff’s Office deputies arrested Jorge Gonzalez and shared a video of him appearing to laugh while walking with Sheriff Marcos Lopez to a squad car. The sheriff said the father claimed he was only trying to protect his son.
“This is not his first time,” said Gonzalez. “I’ve heard that he’s gone to other, like a Harmon game and another school, and caused a disruption, however, it never got to this level where he actually struck someone.”
“Parents don’t understand, some coaches don’t understand, kids don’t understand because no one has made them aware, or made them stop,” said Mora.
The umpire said he’s noticed parents getting more aggressive during games.
“It needs to stop because I just got hit,” said Mora. “Maybe tomorrow somebody gets killed. Then what?”
Gonzalez is facing a felony battery charge.
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