It's a bit of a he said/she said that started with an anonymous accusation that someone was lighting up at a community soccer game.
Ricky Franchi : They won't tell us who made these allegations. So to me, it’s a figment of their imaginations. First of all, there's no type of evidence of proof, and they took it upon themselves just to ban us.
Franchi's California Soccer League has been playing on La Mesa fields for eight years. But for the rest of the season, adults in the league will have to find another place to play. The La Mesa City Council banned the grown-ups from this field at Parkway Middle School -- all La Mesa fields two months ago -- after allegations that people were smoking at a game.
Art Madrid, La Mesa Mayor : We received a call from a parent whose kid goes to Parkway Middle. And she called twice, and then our Director of Community Services asked if she was serious about those allegations to submit a written complaint, and she did. And that's valid proof for us.
Madrid says smoking on the soccer fields violates a 12-page contract that each league signs with the city. Because many of the fields are on school property, there's a zero-tolerance alcohol, drug and tobacco policy. Franchi supports the rules, but feels the ban is politically motivated.
Franchi : There's a lack of fields in San Diego, and basically what they're trying to do is get rid of some organizations, so other organizations, those that are in the political hierarchy, are able to use the fields for their leagues.
Franchi says the council has looked the other way when other leagues in town break the rules. To back up his story, he took these pictures. Here's another league's coach on the field, and here he is smoking on the premises.
Franchi : Taking these pictures wasn't to point the finger and accuse, it was basically to help us show, okay, if you're doing a zero tolerance, then you're not going to have anybody participating on your fields.
Mayor Madrid denies allegations that the city-imposed penalty is too harsh. He says there are no exceptions to a zero-tolerance policy. The California Soccer League can re-apply to use the fields next season.
