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SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- A Nevada woman angered by fouls called during a basketball game for 10- and 11-year-old boys in southern Utah has been charged in an alleged attack on the pregnant referee calling the game.
Melissa Cheeney, 33, of Pioche, Nev., denied assaulting the ref in a telephone interview with The Associated Press on Thursday.
Cheeney has been charged with class A misdemeanor assault and public intoxication, a class C misdemeanor, said Iron County prosecutor Scott Garrett. Class A misdemeanors carry a penalty of up to one year in jail, class C violations are punishable by up to 90 days in jail.
Garrett said the assault charge was heightened to a Class A because the referee, who was not identified, is pregnant.
The incident occurred after a Cedar City-sponsored youth basketball game Monday night at Cedar Middle School.
Cheeney was upset by calls made during the game and confronted the referee after the game, said Cedar City Police Sgt. Jerry Womack.
Cheeney then grabbed the referee, who is several months pregnant, by the hair, pulled her to the ground and kicked her, Womack said.
Other parents broke up the fight and called police, he said. The woman told police she had consumed alcohol before the game, he said.
He said the referee was taken to a hospital to be checked out, was released the same evening and seemed to be fine.
Cheeney told the AP that she did not assault the woman, but did approach her after the game to discuss what she perceived as unfair officiating. Her 10-year-old son fouled out during the game.
"When I walked up to her, she shoved me," Cheeney said. "And when she shoved me, I fell back and I reached out and grabbed her."
Cheeney said she caught hold of the woman's hair, and they both fell down. Other parents piled on top of her and pulled the women apart, she said.
When police arrived, Cheeney said she was upset that they were focusing only on her and raised her voice at officers. She said she told them she had one beer before the game.
(Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
