Local battle gets national attention
Posted: 04.16.2012 at 4:06 AM
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ISHPEMING -- By now you've heard of the battle between Eric Dompierre and the Michigan High School Athletic Association. Eric is a junior in high school with Down Syndrome, who's been banned from the basketball court for his age.  He recently turned 19 and under the rules, he can't play next season.

After first airing Eric's battle three weeks ago, his parents had no idea the attention it would get. The national attention, that is. Recently the family has done interviews with NBC, FOX and CNN, even landing an article in Sports Illustrated.
    
Eric's dad, Dean, says he hopes supporters reach the MHSAA council that's meeting to make a decision this May.  A petition with more than 80,000 signatures aims to convince the council to vote on changing the age rule for kids with disabilities.

"The last three weeks have been a wild ride. It's really struck a cord with a lot of people; a lot of people see it as kind of a no brainer, I guess. A lot of people have used that term. It just seems like it makes sense for these kids to be allowed to play," said Eric's father, Dean Dompierre.

You can find the petition by clicking here.