LAUDERHILL, FLA. (WSVN) - A fight between Lauderhill middle school students has triggered a police investigation after the parents of one of the students were accused of instigating and even participating in the off-campus altercation.
Expletive-filled cellphone video captured the chaotic after-school scuffle that took place several blocks away from Westpine Middle School, Monday afternoon. Instead of attempting to break up the fight, one woman is seen egging on the children.
LaShawn Bell and Tiffany Wynn said their children were among the students who were attacked by a student who, she claimed, was intentionally brought by his parents to fight her son.
“Yes, I know it’s crazy, but parents [were involved],” said Wynn.
Bryant Grant, one of the students who claims he was attacked, said the blows came not just from a fellow student but by that student’s father. “His dad punched me, and he threw me to the ground,” he said.
At one point, the footage shows the fight spilling onto a busy street. Car horns could be heard amid the students’ shrieks.
Student Tylah Davis said she got pretty banged up. “We went to the hospital because when we got home, my neck was hurting bad, and I had a bad headache,” she said.
Bell said, if there’s an issue with their children, it should be handled at school. “Why not go to the office and do it the right way?” she said. “Why would you bring a child to fight?”
Lauderhill Police said they have classified the incident as a misdemeanor. They will be forwarding the case to their criminal investigations division to follow up.
“We would expect adults to be the voice of reason and calm and to quell fights rather to participate actively in them,” said a police spokesperson.
Bell and Wynn said they have also notified the school board. “The school is saying, ‘Oh, deal with the law,’ and the law told us that, actually, the school should be a little more involved,” said Bell, “so it’s like, who’s going to do what?”
Meanwhile, the concerned mothers said their children fear there could be another fight in the near future. “I want these people arrested,” said Bell. “I want them off the street before they do this to somebody else’s child.”
Broward County Public Schools said they are aware of the issue, but since it’s an off-campus incident, it falls within Lauderhill Police’s jurisdiction.
No charges have been filed, but investigators said they are not ruling them out.
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