By Sky News US Team
The widow of an adult league soccer referee who died after being punched on the pitch has shown her husband's killer a red card at his sentencing.
Baseel Abdul-Amir Saad was sentenced to at least eight years in prison following a guilty plea to involuntary manslaughter.
The 36-year-old auto mechanic "sucker punched" John Bieniewicz as he prepared to show Saad a red card during a match in Livonia, Michigan, last summer, witnesses said.
Mr Bieniewicz, 44, succumbed to his injuries two days later in hospital.
His death put a spotlight on out-of-control recreational athletes, and Mr Bieniewicz's widow, Kris Bieniewicz, made the symbolic red card gesture in court as she continued lobbying state lawmakers to consider new crimes for assaults on sports referees.
She recently testified at Michigan's Capitol in support of proposed legislation that would make it a felony to assault a sports official in the state.
Referees "are out there on an island with no one to defend them", she said.
"Something more than a misdemeanour should be in place."
On Friday, Ms Bieniewicz described Saad's sentence and plea deal as generous.
"It's murder. It will always be murder in my eyes," she told the court.
Saad, who fled the pitch after the attack, surrendered to authorities the following day.
He was initially charged with assault and released on bond, but later charged with second-degree murder after Mr Bieniewicz died.
Saad agreed to plead guilty to involuntary manslaughter just days before his case was set to go to trial.
He expressed remorse at the sentencing hearing, telling the judge that he prays for Mr Bieniewicz's family, including his two children.
Under the sentencing guidelines, Saad will be eligible for parole after eight years. His maximum punishment is 15 years in prison.
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