Indo-Canadian Hockey Dad Gets Conditional Discharge For Threatening Player On Son’s Hockey Team

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Terry Litt, a well known former street hockey goalie who played in a Church league as well as outdoor hockey leagues in the Indo-Canadian community, was given a 12-month conditional discharge for threatening a player on his son’s hockey team. The incident happened inside the team dressing room last February.

BURNABY – Indo-Canadian hockey dad from Burnaby has been sentenced for threatening a nine-year-old player on his son’s hockey team.

Terry Litt, 57, a well known former street hockey goalie who played in a Church league as well as outdoor hockey leagues in the Indo-Canadian community, pleaded guilty to uttering threats to cause death or bodily harm to his son Jordan’s teammate Rocky Bhala and was sentenced Thursday to a conditional discharge with 12 months probation, reported CBC news.

The argument started among the two hockey players after a game at the Karen Magnussen Arena in North Vancouver on Feb. 21 last year and then escalated when Litt intervened.

In court, it was revealed the children had often had physical confrontations in the past.

“Jordan, every time he’d see me, he’d give me a little punch. I kept telling him to stop but he would never listen, but one day when he was having trouble taking off his jersey, I punched him,” Rocky told CBC News.

That’s when Jordan’s father, who was in the change room, yelled at him.

“He said, ‘Don’t touch my f–king kid or I’ll kill you,’ and he repeated that two to three times,” Rocky said. “If two kids have an argument, they should let them settle it, and not spazz out at the kids if something happened.”

Litt’s lawyer argued in court that the outburst was completely out of character. Litt took six weeks of anger management courses after the incident, has no criminal history and acknowledged in court that there’s no excuse for what he did.

Along with making an apology to Rocky, Litt must also avoid contact with him and his family as well as seek counselling if directed to by probation officer.

“It’s apparent he lost his cool in the change room,” the judge said, adding it was unlikely Litt would be before the courts again. As a result. he received a conditional discharge with 12 months’ probation.

Rocky’s father, Ron Bhala, who wasn’t in the locker room at the time of the incident, said he’s satisfied with the outcome.

“I hope this can serve as a lesson that you can’t just attack a nine-year-old boy at the time and get away with it,” said Bhala.

He remains upset with the Burnaby Winter Club, saying the coaches in the change room who witnessed the incident didn’t protect his son.

Players and coaches say it’s a lesson for everyone.

“We’re there for the kids to have fun and be there to be involved with organized sports, not there to get into battles with he said she said and all that aggressiveness,” said Dan Melanson of the Burnaby Winter Club Minor Hockey Association

Litt has had difficulty enrolling his son in other hockey clubs since the incident, although Jordan now plays for another team.

Rocky had to see a psychologist for months, but is now back playing hockey.

Courtesy CBC News