Disciplinary Committee

BACKGROUND

The purpose of this document is to provide Coaches, Disciplinary Committee Members, CCYHA Board Members, and CCYHA Members an easy to follow guide on how or what to do when there is a report or observance of player misconduct.

It is the belief of the Disciplinary Committee that MOST disciplinary issues can and should be handled on or off ice by the Head Coach or the nearest available coach. Hockey is an emotional contact sport and we are dealing with growing minds and bodies of youth players. The good order and discipline of the organization is important to handle negative situations promptly for the purpose of safety and to not let bad actors continue to negatively impact our organization. This allows us to focus on hockey.

The Complaint Process

Any member of the CCYHA can file a disciplinary complaint. However, basic disciplinary infractions should attempt to be handled at the lowest level by a coach (on or off the ice). In order to make a complaint you must do the following:

Observe a disciplinary issue that was not corrected by a coach or a coach was not present to correct it. This infraction must be of the nature that a simple correction by an adult would not fix it. For example: a minor infraction of a kid goofing off during a drill does not constitute a complaint. A physical altercation in the locker room in which a coach was not present would constitute a valid complaint. In the case of a Safesport violation direct observation by the complainant is not necessary. A suspected Safesport violation will automatically trigger a fact finding inquiry into the matter by the CCYHA Disciplinary Committee.

*** When in doubt, ask the Committee Chairman or a committee member for guidance***

1. Call, text, email, or otherwise contact the CCYHA Disciplinary Chairman (Vice President)
2. The Chairman will then do one of the following:

• Deem the complaint not egregious enough and refer it to the appropriate head coach
• Take the complaint and start an inquiry into the disciplinary issue Deem the complaint erroneous
• If the complaint is worthy of investigation the Chairman will do the following:
• Inform the committee members of the disciplinary infraction worthy of investigation
• Delegate points of inquiry to committee members and collect statements and supporting facts/evidence
• Inform the family members of parties affected of the inquiry, accusation/situation, and set a general timeline for informal hearing, and answer any questions the affected parties may have
• Set a time and date for an informal hearing among committee members
• Hold the informal hearing and adjudicate/settle at the informal hearing or find that a formal hearing is necessary
• Hold the formal hearing with the accused, the victim, and witnesses if necessary to conclude with a preponderance of evidence that the accused is guilty or not guilty of the infraction.
• Propose corrective action and hold a vote of the disciplinary committee of the proposed corrective action(s).
• Report the results to the CCYHA board of directors in writing and update at the next available board meeting. Certain corrective actions established in the CCYHA bylaws require Board of Directors vote. Any corrective action NOT established in the bylaws is at the discretion of the committee. However, if a corrective action is severe enough that the Board of Directors determine there should be a review by the entire board, a board vote to overturn the committee is possible.
• Ensure the corrective action is completed

Common Infractions handled at the Head Coach level

Low level fighting (pushing, shoving, slash on the pads)

Low level arguing with an official by a player

Players arguing with each other

Players not paying attention during drills

Minor locker room horseplay

Low level name calling that does not violate Safesport (sexual harassment, bullying, racist remarks, etc)

This is also not an all-inclusive list. There is no reporting criteria for any of these infractions. Handle it at the Team/Coach level at the earliest opportunity.

Mandatory Reporting Criteria

The observing coach, official, or CCYHA member must report to the Chairmen of the Disciplinary Committee the following infractions within 24 hours using the Complaint Process.

1. Fighting (punching, kicking, hitting with sticks) beyond the “low-level” listed above.
2. Fighting with injury requiring medical attention or more than 5 minutes removal from the event.
3. Any violation or suspected violation of Safesport
4. Major safety violations
5. Sexual Harassment or suspected sexual harassment
6. Abuse of an official
7. Infractions against another organization
8. Any infraction that could bring embarrassment to the organization to include on social media
9. Repeated infractions without the player responding to correction by the coach
10. Any match penalty for player conduct
11. Any major violation of the USAH Code of Conduct
12. Destruction of property

This is not an all-inclusive list. When in doubt, ask the Chairman of the Disciplinary Committee. This is in no way taking power from any coach, who may enforce different or additional corrective actions within the scope of team events. This process is to take the politics out of the situation and ensure an unbiased party (the Disciplinary Committee) takes appropriate corrective action. Coaches will use the CCYHA DISCIPLINARY ACTION REPORT form to report any violation of a mandatory nature to the Disciplinary Committee./

***NOTE: The Disciplinary Committee will not engage in criminal investigation. The proper law enforcement agency, with jurisdiction, will handle any infraction that is criminal in nature.