School Sports Events Get Rocked by Rash of Recent Violent Crime

By Kerry A. White

The recent rash of school shootings--the latest in Pomona, Calif., last week--has not bypassed interscholastic sports.

Deadly gunfire that erupted outside a championship high school basketball game in Philadelphia earlier this semester was the most recent reminder that, despite schools' best attempts to protect students during organized sporting events, the combustible mix of raucous crowds, bitter rivalries, and sometimes, knives and guns, can take on a role larger than that of the game itself.

Consequently, school sports officials are again grappling with the issue of how to ensure student safety without depriving the student athletes...