Denver Pickleball Player Arrested After Marking Gym Floor With Permanent Marker

However, the Denver Parks and Recreation immediately banned him from their premises and contacted the police, who issued an arrest warrant for him. Gunay went to the police headquarters on March 24, facing charges of felony criminal mischief. He could go to jail for one to three years, but the Denver Public Prosecutor’s Office decided not to charge him and instead sent the case to mediation. “Mr Guney was injured because he had to surrender. [and] “Sit in jail for 10 hours,” said Hollyd Hoskins,’s lawyer, to As It Happens’s guest, Gillian Findlay. Staff at the Central Park Recreation Center in Denver helped pickleball players set up a temporary stadium by drawing “X” marks on the gym floor, indicating where players should place a yellow marker to describe their playing field. (Submitted by Hollynd Hoskins)
Denver Parks and Recreation did not respond to a request for comment from As It Happens. The retiree played regularly and volunteered at the Central Park Recreation Center, which has one of the only gyms in Denver, Colo., That does not have fixed pickleball lines. It was also one of the only centers to reopen last fall and launch a pickleball program as restrictions on the coronavirus pandemic were lifted. The sport is a combination of tennis, badminton and table tennis. Pickball players can play indoors or outdoors, in singles or doubles, on a badminton-sized court and on a slightly modified tennis net. They hit a hard, plastic ball with an oar instead of a racket. The staff helped the players set up a temporary pitch by drawing their own “X” marks on the gym floor, indicating where the players should put yellow markers and describing their playing field. According to Hoskins, Guney asked Denver Parks and Recreation for more hours and a permanent court. He also taught the local youth how to play the game. Throughout his involvement, his staff commissioned them to draw a diagram – a reference to where they should make their own marks each morning on the gym floor. After a pickleball match on March 14, Guney – by far the center’s top supporter of pickleball – saw some of the “X” marks on the gym floor fade. So he went upstairs, asked the staff for a black Sharpie and then painted an “X” or a box on some of the pre-existing signs. “He thought he was helping. He thought he had the license. And that was a big mistake,” he said. According to the Washington Post, Denver Parks and Recreation blamed Guney distortion of public property and causing damage worth US $ 9,344 ($ 11,666 Cdn), which is the cost of finishing the gym floor. Pickleball players use removable yellow markers or yellow tape to indicate their playing field on temporary pitches. (Submitted by Hollynd Hoskins)
On Tuesday, the Denver Public Prosecutor’s Office issued a statement advising park managers and the pickleball player to look at each other and play ball – figuratively. “My office has not indicted Mr Arslan Guney on criminal charges,” said Denver Attorney General Beth McCann. “In my proposal, the parties will try to resolve this issue through mediation with a city mediator. I am optimistic that by sitting down and finding a mutually acceptable solution, this issue can be resolved amicably.” Written by Mehek Mazhar. Interview with Hollynd Hoskins produced by Chris Harbord.

title: “Denver Pickleball Player Arrested After Marking Gym Floor With Permanent Marker " ShowToc: true date: “2022-12-08” author: “Joshua Brown”

However, the Denver Parks and Recreation immediately banned him from their premises and contacted the police, who issued an arrest warrant for him. Gunay went to the police headquarters on March 24, facing charges of felony criminal mischief. He could go to jail for one to three years, but the Denver Public Prosecutor’s Office decided not to charge him and instead sent the case to mediation. “Mr Guney was injured because he had to surrender. [and] “Sit in jail for 10 hours,” said Hollyd Hoskins,’s lawyer, to As It Happens’s guest, Gillian Findlay. Staff at the Central Park Recreation Center in Denver helped pickleball players set up a temporary stadium by drawing “X” marks on the gym floor, indicating where players should place a yellow marker to describe their playing field. (Submitted by Hollynd Hoskins)
Denver Parks and Recreation did not respond to a request for comment from As It Happens. The retiree played regularly and volunteered at the Central Park Recreation Center, which has one of the only gyms in Denver, Colo., That does not have fixed pickleball lines. It was also one of the only centers to reopen last fall and launch a pickleball program as restrictions on the coronavirus pandemic were lifted. The sport is a combination of tennis, badminton and table tennis. Pickball players can play indoors or outdoors, in singles or doubles, on a badminton-sized court and on a slightly modified tennis net. They hit a hard, plastic ball with an oar instead of a racket. The staff helped the players set up a temporary pitch by drawing their own “X” marks on the gym floor, indicating where the players should put yellow markers and describing their playing field. According to Hoskins, Guney asked Denver Parks and Recreation for more hours and a permanent court. He also taught the local youth how to play the game. Throughout his involvement, his staff commissioned them to draw a diagram – a reference to where they should make their own marks each morning on the gym floor. After a pickleball match on March 14, Guney – by far the center’s top supporter of pickleball – saw some of the “X” marks on the gym floor fade. So he went upstairs, asked the staff for a black Sharpie and then painted an “X” or a box on some of the pre-existing signs. “He thought he was helping. He thought he had the license. And that was a big mistake,” he said. According to the Washington Post, Denver Parks and Recreation blamed Guney distortion of public property and causing damage worth US $ 9,344 ($ 11,666 Cdn), which is the cost of finishing the gym floor. Pickleball players use removable yellow markers or yellow tape to indicate their playing field on temporary pitches. (Submitted by Hollynd Hoskins)
On Tuesday, the Denver Public Prosecutor’s Office issued a statement advising park managers and the pickleball player to look at each other and play ball – figuratively. “My office has not indicted Mr Arslan Guney on criminal charges,” said Denver Attorney General Beth McCann. “In my proposal, the parties will try to resolve this issue through mediation with a city mediator. I am optimistic that by sitting down and finding a mutually acceptable solution, this issue can be resolved amicably.” Written by Mehek Mazhar. Interview with Hollynd Hoskins produced by Chris Harbord.