A top Republican state lawmaker in Tennessee has apologized after attempting to pull down the pants of a referee at his son’s high school basketball game.
Rep. Jeremy Faison, the state House Republican Caucus chair, said in a statement Tuesday that he had “acted the fool tonight and lost my temper at a ref.”
“For years I thought how wrong it is when a parent looses [sic] their temper at a sporting event,” he wrote in a note posted on Twitter. “It’s not Christian and it’s not mature and it’s embarrassing to the child have always been my thoughts.”
Video of the incident shows Faison appearing to shout and point his finger at the game official before yanking on his pants and walking away.
Providence Academy in Johnson City was hosting Lakeway Christian Academy for the boys’ game, which was livestreamed on Facebook.
The official asked that police be called, The Tennessean reported, however, they ultimately were not contacted. Faison was reportedly told to leave the game.
Faison is from Cosby and has served as the House Republican Caucus chairman since 2019.
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