Florida school brawl: 11 students arrested at Matanzas High School after huge fight, deputies say
ORLANDO, Fla. - Nearly a dozen students at Matanzas High School in Florida are facing charges following a huge brawl Monday on campus, according to the Flagler County Sheriff's Office.
Three students – ranging in age between 14 and 17 – were physically arrested on charges of resisting a law enforcement officer and battery on school personnel, FCSO said in a news release. Deputies are recommending charges against eight other students, including breach of peace, disturbance of a school function, among other charges.
FOX 35 has decided not to name the students who were arrested due to their ages.
The brawl happened around 1 p.m. in a hallway between buildings 5 and 6, FCSO said in a news release.
School officials found a large crowd of students in the hallway watching another group of students who were allegedly fighting, FCSO said. School resource officers, teachers, and school administrators tried to break up the fight, and to get the crowd of students watching to leave the area.
Blurred bodycam video released by FCSO showed the chaos as officials tried to disperse the crowd and detain those allegedly involved in the fighting.
"I don't think there's good parenting that's going on. The parents want to be friends and not parents. So parents need to be parents first and then a friend later to their child …" Sheriff Rick Staly said. "We just need the parents to help us teach their kids because we get involved when it's too late. At that point, you know, there's there's no talking. There's handcuffs at that point."
It's the latest violent incident reported at Matanzas High School.
Student accused of biting school staff member
A student at Matanzas High School in Palm Coast is accused of getting into a fight with another student, then biting an employee who stepped in to break the fight up, officials said. The 16-year-old girl was booked into the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice on a charge of battery of a school official.
This week, FOX 35 reported on a 16-year-old girl who allegedly bit a school employee who was attempting to break up another fight. In February, a 17-year-old student was arrested after he allegedly pummeled a teacher's aid, causing her to fall and lose consciousness, and then repeatedly punched her.
Matanzas High student to be charged as adult in alleged attack
A 17-year-old student accused of ambushing a teacher's aid in a hallway at Matanzas High School in Palm Coast – knocking her unconscious and repeatedly hitting her because he was upset his Nintendo Switch was taken away – will be charged as an adult, court records show.
"The lack of respect demonstrated by these students is simply shameful," Staly said in a prepared statement. "But actions have consequences."
"Parents, be the Sheriff in your home and teach your kids the importance of respecting teachers, staff, and deputies. Teach them how to handle disagreements and that fighting only leads to more violence," he said.
According to FCSO, a 14-year-old girl pushed a school resource officer to attack another student. She was detained, arrested, and booked on charges of disorderly conduct, disruption of a school function, and resisting a law enforcement officer with violence.
A 17-year-old boy allegedly "charged" at a staff member amid the fight and punched him, FCSO said. That student was detained and faces a charge of felony battery on a school official.
Another 17-year-old boy is accused of grabbing a school administrator and attacking them as they were escorting another student away from the fight. That student was arrested for disorderly conduct and battery on a school official.
Flagler Schools Superintendent LaShakia Moore said in a statement that "this type of behavior is not to be tolerated by anyone," but cautioned that the alleged actions do not represent the rest of the student body.