Overview
This document details the formal guidelines on how incident reports filed against a team or player shall be investigated and dealt with.
A Note on Confidentiality
The names of those involved in, or witness to, an incident will not be released to the public. Some information regarding incidents may be released, and names may be given to League Coordinators and Captains if required by the Disciplinary Guidelines detailed below. However, no information will be released by WODS that would enable the general public to determine the identity of the individuals involved in a specific incident. It must be noted that any and all information regarding a specific incident will be made available to appropriate authorities where WODS is required, by law, to provide it.
Incident Investigation Process
The following shall be the process for investigating and ruling on incidents reported by members:
- Incident reports should be forwarded to the League Coordinator immediately responsible for the game where the incident occurred. Should the incident not be related to a scheduled league game, the incident report shall be forwarded directly to the WODS Board of Directors and the process will skip to Step #5.
- The Coordinator will solicit reports from the parties directly involved with the incident, the captains of the teams involved with the incident, and any relevant witnesses to the incident. The identities of all of these individuals must be made available to the Coordinator upon request. Failure to do so may result in further disciplinary action.
- Upon reviewing the reports, the Coordinator shall make a ruling according to the Disciplinary Guidelines defined below. The original incident report and the Coordinator's ruling shall be filed with the WODS Board of Directors.
- Should the Coordinator be unable to make a ruling on the matter, either due to the restrictions of the Disciplinary Guidelines or for any other reason, or should the parties involved not be satisfied with the Coordinator's ruling, the matter may be referred to the WODS Board of Directors for further review or appeal.
- The WODS Board of Directors will review all reports forwarded by the Coordinator and/or will solicit reports from the parties directly involved with the incident, the captains of the teams involved with the incident, and any relevant witnesses to the incident. The identities of all of these individuals shall be made available to the WODS Board of Directors upon request. Failure to do so may result in further disciplinary action.
- Upon reviewing the reports, the WODS Board of Directors shall make a final ruling according to the Disciplinary Guidelines defined below.
Disciplinary Guidelines
The following are the guidelines for disciplinary rulings stemming from the Incident Investigation Process outlined above:
Conflict of Interest
Should there be a conflict of interest, or the appearance of a conflict of interest, for anyone charged with investigating and ruling on an incident, the incident shall automatically be referred to the next level of investigation. For instance, a Coordinator shall refer to the Board of Directors if there is a conflict. Should there be a conflict of interest for a Board member, that Board member shall excuse him/herself and another Board member shall take over the investigation.
Possible Disciplinary Actions
WODS is not a legal body. It is not in a position to detail all manner of potential incidents and assign corresponding disciplinary actions. It is felt that the judgment of those investigating and ruling on a given incident, and the appeal process provided, will prevent disciplinary actions that are out of proportion to an incident. However, it should be noted that the disciplinary actions taken against an individual or team by WODS may include, but are not limited to:
- no action
- official warnings
- alteration of win/loss records for a team
- suspension of an individual or team
- expulsion of an individual or team
Any of these actions may be taken based on the severity of a single incident or documented history of incidents.
Disciplinary Authority
As per the Incident Investigation Process outlined above, various individuals or groups are empowered to impose disciplinary actions. The following outlines the actions each of these individuals or groups are authorized to impose upon an individual or team.
Coordinator
- The Coordinator is authorized to impose sanctions up to and including the suspension of an individual for as many as five games.
Board of Directors
- The League Management Cell of the Board of Directors is authorized to impose sanctions up to and including the permanent expulsion of any individual or team from WODS. However, any ruling involving permanent expulsion would require approval from the majority of members of the entire Board of Directors.
Suspensions
Due to the fact that individuals may play on multiple teams, suspensions of individuals will include any and all teams for which the individual plays. This includes teams not involved in incidents that warranted the suspension. Games for which an entire team is suspended may be counted as defaults. As such, a team that is suspended for multiple games may come up for review by the Board of Directors for removal from the league.
Enforcement
The sport of Ultimate is based on the premise of Spirit of the Game. It is written into our rules that no player shall intentionally break the rules for gain. As such, players and their captains are entrusted to adhere to the rulings imposed by the league. However, in the event of a suspension, additional measures must be taken to ensure compliance with the ruling. If an individual or team is suspended for any number of games, the captains of their scheduled opponents for the duration of the suspension will be notified as will the coordinators directly responsible for those games.
For suspension of an individual, the Captain's Rule may not be used to allow the suspended player to play.
If a player or team is found to be playing in defiance of a suspension, additional and more serious disciplinary actions will be taken against the player. Also, actions may be taken against the team captain as an individual, or the team as a whole.