PITTSBURGH — Channel 11 News was at Perry Traditional Academy Thursday morning when dozens of police officers responded to fight inside the school that sent one student to the hospital.
Police said the fight started over something “carried over from one of the neighborhoods.”
Channel 11’s Alan Jennings reported that it began with two kids and escalated when several others got involved.
Lt. Shirley Sloan said one of the students was jumped in the Northview Heights housing complex Wednesday night and began fighting with people associated with that attack.
“It appears that there was something that carried over that happened in the neighborhood of Northview Heights last night. It carried over in the gym,” Pittsburgh Police Lt. Shirley Sloan said.
Students were being held in the gym while they waited to take tests, she said.
“The fight breaks out and then the kids congregate,” Sloan said. “The crowd got unruly, and pushing and shoving led to more fights.”
One student was taken to an area hospital to be treated for a hand injury. His name and condition haven’t been released.
One father told Channel 11’s Alan Jennings that his son was so shaken by the 20-person brawl that he asked his dad to pick him up early.
“Obviously they are threatening other kids, not just my son, but other children too. As you see, people and parents are coming up here to get their kids and take them out of the environment so they can feel safe,” the father said.
There is no word on if any of the students involved will be facing charges.
Pugh said city police would keep a unit in the area, and additional officers would be at the school during dismissal.
Channel 11's news exchange partners at TribLIVE contributed to this report.
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