Ganging-Up In Houston

Apparently, a number of students thugs in a Houston, Texas high school have tired of hosting students evacuated from Louisiana and are contesting the out-of-towners for "control" of the school:

A fight Tuesday morning escalated to a riot between local and evacuated students from Louisiana attending a southeast Houston high school, KPRC Local 2 reported.

Officers with the Houston Police Department and the Houston Independent School District said about 20 to 25 students were involved in the 8 a.m. fight at Jesse Jones High School, located at 7414 St. Lo.

HISD confirmed the bloody brawl was between Houston students and students evacuated from New Orleans because of Hurricane Katrina who are temporarily attending the school.

"One of the Jones' kids tossed a soft drink can into the group of News Orleans' kids," HISD spokesman Terry Abbot said.

The confrontation about respect and which group of students controlled the school had been brewing since late last week, according to students and parents.

"Everybody was fighting," a student said.

"We are trying to help them and they are coming over here beating up our children. I don't think it's fair," one parent told KPRC Local 2.

When the fight cleared, three students were transported to a hospital with minor injuries. Six students were arrested and charged with disruption of school activities, a Class C misdemeanor.

Police were also forced to clear parents from the area.

"They got gangs in Houston. They got gangs in New Orleans. They all coincide right here. I don't want nobody just blaming New Orleans people," another parent told KPRC Local 2.

"Take (the New Orleans students) out of Jones. That's what they need to do and go to their own school. That's what they need to do," Houston parent Carol Rigsby said.

The Jones High School principal warned all students that violence would not be tolerated on campus.

School officials said the school day had pretty much ended by noon and asked parents to pick up their children.

KPRC Local 2 spoke with several parents of students from Louisiana who said they were not sure if they would allow their children to return to class on Wednesday because of safety concerns. Some of the New Orleans students said they would not return.

"We have three full-time police officers assigned here from the HISD Police Department. We've also asked for assistance from the Houston Police Department," Abbott said.

HISD officials said more than 3,000 students from Louisiana are attending schools in the district, and that up until this fight, the district had not experienced any trouble with the displaced students.

Heh. Having a soft-drink can thrown at your group is a real good reason to start a riot.

Call me old-fashioned, but I thought that it was the adults who were supposed to "control" a school's campus.

Maybe the President should send the 82nd Airborne to re-establish civilian authority over the hallways of Jones High School.

Main Page/Latest Posts