Facebook Posts May Have Caused Fight At Annapolis High School; 7 Arrested

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (WJZ) --  Anne Arundel County police broke up a major fight inside Annapolis High School and arrested seven students.

Derek Valcourt has more on what went down Monday.

It started with two girls. No weapons were used, but one of them threw a chair--and it was all over something posted online.

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Classes had not yet started for the day when a fight broke out just after 7 a.m. inside the busy Annapolis High School cafeteria. By day's end, everyone at school knew about it.

"I heard a fight started over Facebook and someone threw a chair and then it got real right after that," said student Nash Whitaker.

"I just saw a whole bunch of cop cars pull up and I saw a whole bunch of cops run into the building," said student Alex Cabrera.

Police say a 15-year-old girl got into an argument with 18-year-old Lakyra Reid. By the time the school resource officer arrived, the fight had escalated and a huge crowd gathered to watch it.

"That school resource officer called this in and responded, called for assistance due to the large crowd, several hundred students prior to school in the cafeteria area. We had a quick response and got that situation under control relatively quickly," said Justin Mulcahy, Anne Arundel County Police.

Police say one student had a bloody nose but no one had to be taken to the hospital.

In all, police arrested seven kids--five girls and two boys. Two of the girls were 18; one was Reid and the other was identified as Tamira Smith.

And yes, apparently the fight was all about something said on Facebook.

"It's virtually impossible, as you know, for schools to monitor every facet of social media in every student. And what happens is a lot of times is these things begin in the community where the students are far away from each other and they cross paths in a school setting and spills over in the school," said Anne Arundel County school spokesman Bob Mosier.

The seven students now face criminal charges and ridicule from classmates who can't believe Facebook led to a fistfight.

"It's just dumb," said one student.

"That's crazy," said another.

In addition to criminal charges, all seven arrested students will also face punishment from the school, including possible suspension.

As a precaution, police kept extra officers on hand at the school throughout the day.