Racial furor in Compton, CA, over high school gridder who punched referee for allegedly calling him 'nigger.'

An incident in which a Black high school player from Compton, CA, punched out a White referee during a football game in Beverly Hills for allegedly calling him a "nigger" is the latest to divide an already split Los Angeles area.

Senior Kumasi Simmons, a 17-year-old honor student from Centennial High in Compton, alleged that Kenneth Smotrys, 34, a certified public accountant, called him the "N" word during a game against Beverly Hills High School in Beverly Hills. Smotrys has denied the allegation and some of the Beverly Hills players (some of whom are Black) claimed they did not hear any slur. However, another Centennial player, Vincent Brooks, 16, says Smotrys called him the same name during the same game.

The punching incident was caught on amateur videotape. However, both sides have been very emphatic in calling the other liars. Both have threatened lawsuits as well. And the L.A. news media have had a field day reporting on yet another highly-charged racial drama that comes on the heels of the O.J. Simpson trial.

Compton Mayor Omar Bradley, who is Simmons' uncle and head football coach at Centennial, recently held a news conference to level charges of "institutional racism" against the media and school officials. Bradley had been charged with urging the Centennial players to claim they heard Smotrys utter the word.

The incident is being investigated by the California Interscholastic Federation as well as the Compton Unified School District.