Police responded to a “large fight among a group of students” at Vincent High School in Milwaukee on April 23 that resulted in three arrests and two injuries.
Milwaukee Police Department spokesperson Efrain Cornejo said the department is investigating a battery that occurred at 1:39 p.m. at the 7500 block of North Granville Road, which corresponds to the school’s address. He said a large fight ensued with several students that resulted in a 17-year-old boy and two 16-year-old boys being arrested and a 15-year-old and a 16-year-old sustaining non-fatal injuries.
Cornejo said the department will refer criminal charges to the Milwaukee County District Attorney’s office.
Vincent High School principal Richard Watkins said in a letter to parents that school resource officers responded to the fight and requested additional support from the Milwaukee Police Department. Some of the students were hurt and the school notified emergency medical personnel.
For safety reasons, the school was put on a hold, meaning that students were kept inside their classrooms during that time. The hold was eventually lifted and the school day continued, Watkins’ letter said.
Along with any police actions, the district will take steps to discipline students in accordance with Milwaukee Public Schools’ student code of conduct located in the district’s parent and student handbook, Watkins’ letter said.
Discipline for fighting, which is defined as “physical confrontation including, but not limited to, pushing, shoving, and/or exchange of physical blows,” could range from a conference with any combination of students, parents and/or staff and interventions at the lower end all the way up to a recommendation for expulsion on the highest end, the student code of conduct said.
“This behavior is unacceptable and will not be tolerated. We will continue to take any and all appropriate disciplinary action to ensure that Vincent remains a safe and welcoming place for all of our students and staff,” Watkins said in his letter. “I am asking every parent to please talk with their students about appropriate behavior for our learning environment.”
Contact Alec Johnson at 262-875-9469 or alec.johnson@jrn.com. Follow him on X at @AlecJohnson12.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Police respond to ‘large fight’ at Vincent High School in Milwaukee
Reporting by Alec Johnson, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
