Adults barge onto California high school campus to attack student: VIDEO
Parents get on HS campus to fight student
After a fight between students at Martin Luther King High School in Riverside, one of the students called his family members, who came to campus and started another fight.
RIVERSIDE, Calif. - A group of adults forced their way into a Riverside school this week and attacked a student and school employees.
What we know:
It started with a fight between students at Martin Luther King High School in Riverside on Tuesday.
Then, police told FOX 11, one of the students involved in the initial fight called family members, who showed up at the school later.
The group of adults barged its way onto campus and began fighting with the other student from the first fight.
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"He brought in like his mom and everything else, and I was like, ‘Whoa,’" one student told FOX 11. "It was like 20 people coming in behind him too."
Another student said that the group started "punching the guy like crazy," and that a school administrator tried to stop the fight, but the group grabbed him, threw him to the ground, and "had him in a chokehold on the ground."
By the time officers got to the school, the family members had run off. Paramedics took the other student to the hospital with non-serious injuries.
Riverside police arrested one student and took them to juvenile hall. One student has also been charged with battery, police said, while five adults have been charged with battery and trespassing.
What we don't know:
Police did not identify the adults who had been charged.
What they're saying:
Parents are upset that the school wasn't locked down, and students are wondering why no one stopped the group from getting on campus.
"Our students and staff were not notified that this was happening on the campus," said parent Vanessa Brogdon.
Other students called the incident "unacceptable."
"You don't know what they could have had," another student said. "They could have had a dangerous weapon that could have harmed more people here."
The other side:
In a letter to parents, the school said that administrators followed the group when the adults barged in and called police, who responded quickly.
The school says it is working with the district to review and strengthen safety measures.
The Riverside Police Department is investigating.
The full letter from the school can be read below:
"Dear Martin Luther King High School Families and staff:
We want to inform you about a serious incident that occurred on our campus earlier today.
Due to an ongoing off-campus conflict involving students, several unauthorized adults trespassed onto our campus. After individuals refused to follow the check-in procedure a Campus Supervisor followed them and immediately alerted administration who called for law enforcement assistance. Moments later, additional adults also entered and refused to follow required check-in procedures.
Campus Supervisors intervened but were assaulted by a student and trespassing individuals. Assailants departed.
Law enforcement responded quickly thereafter, and we are cooperating fully with their ongoing investigation. We are also working closely with district leadership to review and strengthen our safety procedures to address situations where individuals refuse to follow campus entry protocols.
The safety of our students and staff is always our top priority. We are grateful to our team for their rapid response and to law enforcement for their support."
The Source: Information in this story is from interviews with students and parents of students at Martin Luther King High School in Riverside, a statement from the Riverside Police Department and a letter from the school to family and staff.