Death Threats for Suburban Little League Official Who Reported Jackie Robinson West; Priest Accuses Him of Racist 'Witch Hunt'

Death threats have been aimed at the Evergreen Park Little League official who reported Jackie Robinson Little League’s rule breaking to Little League International. Evergreen Park police have been stationed outside the man’s house, reports DNAinfo Chicago on Wednesday:

Evergreen Park Athletic Association Vice President Chris Janes, who first called for an investigation into Jackie Robinson West’s boundary changes, says he has received several threatening phone calls, including death threats, since the team was stripped of its U.S. title Wednesday.

“We got about 50 messages,” he told DNAinfo Chicago. “I only listened to a few. Some were gibberish ... saying things like ‘You’re an a------.’ A couple said, ‘You deserve to die.’”

» read more via DNAinfo Chicago

In a press conference Wednesday, the Rev. Michael Pfleger of St. Sabina Parish on the South Side singled out Janes for criticism and said Janes was on a racially motivated “witch hunt.”

“I wonder if the same thing would’ve happened to another league, another team, another place,” Pfleger said at the press conference. “It’s most unacceptable to go after the children and target the children.”

» RELATED: Jackie Robinson West Little League Stripped of U.S. Title for Cheating

The Jackie Robinson West story, as reported by DNAinfo:

• Jackie Robinson West Broke Residency Rules, Suburban League Claims
• Jackie Robinson West Timeline, Key Dates in the Little League Saga
• Firefighter Involved In Jackie Robinson West Map Flap Quits As Brooks Coach
• Closed-Door Little League Meetings Over Jackie Robinson West Map Get Heated
• Little League Headed Here To Discuss Jackie Robinson West Boundary Flap
• Jackie Robinson West Sister League Official Calls for Investigation
• Jackie Robinson West Secretly Changed Boundary To Add Star Players: Sources
• Coach Who Claimed Jackie Robinson West Cheated Says He Has ‘No Regrets’

» read more by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Mark Konkol