Urbana parent pleads not guilty in headbutting incident at Graham basketball game

An Urbana father was arraigned in Champaign County Municipal Court Tuesday on charges that stem from a headbutting incident involving a referee at a basketball game, according to court records.

James Trapp, 44, pleaded not guilty to assault and disorderly conduct in the incident, court records show. His pretrial hearing was scheduled for at 11 a.m. Feb. 11.

He also was ordered to have no contact with the referee, Douglas Thompson, Graham Schools or OHSAA affiliated events.

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Trapp was charged after he allegedly headbutted a referee Jan. 19 at a Graham Middle School’s fifth-grade girls basketball game.

Thompson said the situation escalated during the second half of the game after parents became rowdy, and he asked Trapp to leave after using profanity toward him during a timeout.

“He flipped me the middle finger and said the ‘F’ word to me again and then he jumped down and he headbutted me in the face,” he said.

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Thompson suffered minor injuries.

The game was part of Dayton Metro Basketball’s season.

“Dayton Metro has a zero toleration policy for any physical abuse of players, coaches, and officials in its league,” said Brett Bush, director for the Dayton Metro Winter League. “The gentleman from Graham involved in the recent altercation has been banned for life from attending any Dayton Metro league games.”

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