11 Students Taken Into Custody After Midday Brawl

(USNewsBreak.com) – It’s not uncommon for fights to break out in schools when emotions escalate into violence among students. However, a massive brawl breaking out in the middle of the day in a school hall isn’t exactly the norm. Yet, that’s exactly what happened at Matanzas High School in Palm Coast, Florida, and it resulted in the arrest of 11 students.

The large-scale fight broke out on the afternoon of Monday, October 9. Police were called to the scene after someone called reporting a disturbance at the school. When they got there, there were several students fighting, and officers had to jump into the fray to help subdue the situation. It wasn’t just teenagers attacking each other, although some took aim at the school administrators and the deputies who responded to the call.

Brawl at Florida high school leads to the arrest of 11 studentshttps://t.co/Q5kW3HiPbF pic.twitter.com/x5wO1te2Bw

— The Washington Times (@WashTimes) October 11, 2023

Once the situation finally calmed down, 11 students were in custody, with three of them — a 14-year-old female and two 17-year-old males — facing felony charges. Those teenagers were charged with battery on a school official and resisting a law enforcement officer with violence. Police filed affidavits with the State Attorney’s Office as well for eight other students. Should they be brought up on charges, they will be misdemeanors.

The Flagler County Sheriff’s Office released blurred bodycam footage on Facebook to show the degree of the incident. The post also detailed the incident as it went down and identified those arrested.

Sheriff Rick Staly said that the students demonstrated a “lack of respect” that was “simply shameful” and noted that “actions have consequences.” He addressed parents and said it was critical that they “be the Sheriff in [their] home and teach [their] kids the importance of respecting” school staff and officers.

It’s not clear what started the incident between the teenagers. The school did reach out to parents to let them know what had happened.