Reports of a fight or a brawl at Flagler Palm Coast High School began coming into the 911 center Wednesday soon after school let out. By the time sheriff’s deputies had investigated, they concluded that the fight had started within the school, then spilled into the parking lot by the Auditorium, involving dozens of students, and briefly continued in the parking lot near Olive Garden and through SnapChat.
In the end, despite phone and surveillance video footage identifying several assailants among the students, no one was arrested, no one faces charges.
FPC Dean Toussaint Roberson first contacted a sheriff’s deputy about emerging trouble at 2:20 p.m. on Dec. 11, just as school was over. There’d been a confrontation in the school. Based on surveillance footage, a sheriff’s deputy reported, “the entire verbal and physical altercation started because several students were mocking another student’s outfit.”
Arguments started in the circle hallway inside the school at 2:18 as more than half a dozen students started taking what amounts to harassing video of the student on Tik Tok, the social media app used to improvise very short music videos. A group had gathered around the student being made fun of, and an argument between the two groups started, then turned physical when one student threw a pen at another. School staff intervened, broke up the fight and ordered one group to move out. The other group, with the student and the outfit in question, stayed behind, but only briefly.
The two groups again confronted each other in the parking lot by the Auditorium’s side, and there not one but several fights escalated involving numerous students: a caller to 911 at one point reported more than 50 students in that part of the parking lot, and more arriving. Girls were “in each other’s faces,” one smacked the other, “then multiple other fights broke out and other people got involved,” a deputy reported. One girl was pushed to the ground and struck several times while down. Students would break up one fight only for other fights to flare up, resume, result in more students getting thrown to the ground, one of whom “was kicked and stomped [on] multiple times.”
The deputy’s report names student one after the other, describing which student was doing what.
After still more physical confrontations, the fight dies down and several students make their way to the parking lot near Olive Garden. The confrontations there were only verbal. After students dispersed or drove off, a different kind of threat began circulating on SnapChat, with one girl claiming she’d heard another “state that she had firearms and would roll up on them.”
“I observed a video provided by [a student] of [another student] screaming, insulting, and asking [the first] where she was at and stating she would roll up on them; however, in the video there was no mention of firearms,” a deputy reported. It should be noted that [a girl] can be heard in the background. The deputy documented taunts between students, but also noted that from observations, the alleged bruise on one student, claimed to be from one of the fights, “was not a bruise but a hickey.”
The deputies’ investigations continued over the next two days, but after making several contacts with several parents, those who had considered charges at first changed their mind, and none wanted to pursue charges anymore, according to the sheriff’s documentation of the incident.
A district spokesman today said “the school is investigating, going through videos on campus to identify students involved. Any discipline will be handled according to our Student Code of Conduct.”
Dave says
Just a scuffle over clothing. No big deal.
Steve says
Too many never do wells that we will be reading about in mugshots for years to come lol comical but predictable who really cares, if they did something would be done.
Concerned Citizen says
If the High School had Uniforms. This would not have be. Apparently they can’t be grown ups and respect no one another. What a student wears shouldn’t even be a problem. These days, you wear what you want. At least I thought so…HIGH SCHOOLERS GROW UP AND BE YOUNG ADULTS.
Karla says
OMG! It has begun!!!!!!!!!!!
Nancy N. says
“the entire verbal and physical altercation started because several students were mocking another student’s outfit.” – Didn’t the school board swear up and down that their uniform dress code would stop things like this? They just wouldn’t listen to parents like me who told them they were dreaming.
Senior says
The high school does have uniforms. You’re supposed to wear a collared shirt or a turtleneck style type of a shirt. Your clothing is also supposed to cover your stomach and undergarments. No rips are allowed in pants or shirts. On cold days students get away with wearing hoodies and sweatpants (depending on how cold it is that day). My point is we do have a dress code, some students just manage to avoid getting in trouble for not wearing their uniforms.
Richard says
The way I see it from this article, there is the potential to have street gangs starting to form. Hopefully Palm Coast won’t become another Chicago or LA.
anonymous says
A dress code is very different from a uniform. Uniforms are a required brand of clothing, with 1 style and 1 or 2 colors of pants, shorts, or skirts, and a specific required shirt for everyone. FPC has a dress code, which is designed to keep students dressed appropriately for school. There is still a lot of leeway in how students dress, partially to give students a chance to express themselves and choose clothing in which they feel more comfortable. Perhaps a uniform requirement would have kept this particular situation from happening, but, unfortunately, people tend to find almost any reason to make fun of other people.
Layla says
If students are in a learning atmosphere where they even think this kind of behavior will be tolerated, our schools are failing us all. This is NOT acceptable, ever. This WILL transfer to later life because all looked the other way. Pretty sad future ahead when nobody has the courage to discipline, when this becomes acceptable. When threats and intimidation become the norm, we have failed.
T.J says
You’re acting like we need to wear boiler suits instead of our current uniforms.
T.F. says
Palm coast doesn’t have the crime rate to become chicago or L.A, everybody around here is 90% of the time more into fighting than to taking another persons life. in the past 20 years only recently have our high schoolers started shooting at each other.
Hmmm says
Really? Chicago or LA? How can that comparison even be made? A school fight breaks out and you associate it with 2 of the biggest gang cities in America.