Presuming that the man arrested by police on Sunday is indeed one of the Bryan Stow attackers, and presuming that the Los Angeles Police Department have enough evidence to turn him over to the district attorney, there will -- at some point -- be a criminal trial involving Giovanni Ramirez.
Provided all that transpires, such a trial is guaranteed to be an emotional, public scene. That's just what happens when multiple communities rally around a situation, as is the case with the Stow attack.
But how much support, exactly, should Giants fans show during this (still hypothetical) trial? The reason I ask? A back-and-forth between Keith Law of ESPN and David Young of TrueBlueLA.com.
"I think Giants fans should flood the courtroom with a sea of orange in support of Bryan Stow," Law tweeted on Sunday evening.
"Jeremy Affeldt and Jamey Carroll advocated leaving the rivalry on the field," Young responded on Twitter Monday. "You should too."
Law's answer was that Young's response has "nothing to do with" Law's original comment. And he's probably right -- but it's all about the interpretation of "support." (And, for the record, I'm more than willing to continue this discussion with Young and Law on Twitter. Hit me up, gents.)
See, it's entirely possible for Giants fans to support Stow without actively crusading against the Dodgers organization and its fans.
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By wearing "a sea of orange" into the courtroom, Giants fans wouldn't be protesting the criminal outrage that is an attack on a Giants fan at Dodger Stadium. They'd simply be utilizing a choice of color scheme -- which happens to be a united fanbase -- to support Stow.
That's -- without putting words into his mouth -- what I believe Law was trying to say.
Young is a Dodgers blogger (and, presumably, a Dodgers fan), so it's understandable that he sees it differently. As a Dodger fan, when a slew of Giants fans wear opposing colors into a Los Angeles courtroom where a "Dodger fan" is being prosecuted for attacking a Giants fan, there is a certain sense of rivalry that exists.
Obviously, as Young notes in a post, no judge is going to allow a "protest" in a courtroom during a criminal proceeding.
But I do think he's missed the point of Law's original tweet, which is, as I said above, simply a statement that seeing a courtroom full of support for Bryan Stow and Stow's family would be beneficial for everyone involved (expect whoever's being prosecuted).
The last thing that the Stow family -- or Giants fans or Dodgers fan or either organization -- would want to see is a vitriol-fueled clothing choice at any sort of trial.
Which is why, in my humble opinion, it would actually be fantastic to see anyone that wants to attend the trial -- be it a Giants fan or a Dodgers fan -- purchase a wristband or shirt from Support4BryanStow.com, a website run by Stow's family.
There are multiple color options, the money goes to a great cause, and because it's dedicated to a singular purpose -- helping Stow and his family -- it will avoid any confusion about "fanhood" when the biggest concern is simply "justice."
