IMHO a ‘move’ made when it is not that player’s turn to move should not be binding upon that player, but other penalties should be enforced, like adding time to the opponent’s clock.
I will decline Mr. Relyea’s suggestion, with my thanks to him for offering it.
In many games, across all three time controls (but especially blitz), players make moves when their clock is not running. Under the view that the action in question is not a move because the clock was not pressed, a player can simply take back a move on the board. Attempting to enforce that view, especially in faster time controls under inadequate supervision (mixing in a FIDE term here - sorry) is not feasible.
I understand Blitz Rule 14. I just don’t think it is designed to cover this particular circumstance.
I think Boyd has a reasonable answer that would probably survive on appeal, but I think I would be inclined to treat this as a piece displacement rather than an illegal move. Player A’s remedy is to restart B’s clock. I think my answer would survive on appeal.
This all presumes no indications of unsporting behavior on player B’s part.
Is it unsporting to frequently start moving before one’s opponent has punched his clock?
And, do we consider history when making a decision?
One of the problems with adding a minute to an offender’s opponent’s time is that a.) it gives the offender time to think while the time is added b.) often the offended doesn’t need more time but is losing and would rather that the game continue while the offender corrects his errors on his own time.
If the player has frequently gained, or tried to gain, advantage by moving on the opponent’s time then I prefer a more aggressive penalty with the hope that it will change the offender’s future behavior.
I think many of us have seen the super blitzers, and many of us have been taken advantage of by them.
The ruling I made: I declared the game a draw. As a TD I was lucky that the offended player had only a King so the result appears less harsh. I know the other player’s history and he moves very quickly, sometimes on his opponent’s time. He needs to stop that and I hope this ruling will help him see that and change his behavior.
Thank you everyone for your help.