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Fight Between Library Security Guard And 17-Year-Old Girl Caught On Camera

BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- An intense physical fight between a library security guard and a 17-year-old girl is caught on cell phone video.

Monique Griego has the footage and response from the library.

The video is violent, with both the guard and the teen throwing punches at each other. Police arrested the girl. According to the police report, what you don't see on the video is what started it all.

Cell phone video captures a wild, drag-out fight between a library security guard and a 17-year-old girl. In it, you can see the teen and guard exchanging blows before he attempts to subdue her on the ground.

It happened Monday at the Enoch Pratt Free Library on Orleans Street and Central Avenue in East Baltimore.

The footage was captured by the girl's friend and quickly spread through social media.

"We want people to know what happened leading up to what they see on the video," said Roswell Encina, Enoch Pratt Free Library.

Encina says it all started when the teen moved a chair and refused to put it back. The guard then confronted her and asked her to leave.

"Next  thing she did was she threw the chair, started screaming and yelling at him, punched him, bit him and even pulled out a pepper spray," Encina said.

According to the police report, in addition to the cell phone video, officers were able to see what happened by taking a look at the footage from cameras inside the library.

The report says surveillance video showed the teen get in the guard's face, and when he tried to forcibly remove her, she pepper sprayed him. The video picks up from there.

"His number one goal there was just to subdue her and calm the situation down," Encina said.

The security guard held the girl until police arrived. No charges were filed against him, but Encina says the library is conducting its own investigation into the guard's use of force.

"Clearly, we are looking into this to make sure all the rules were followed and looking into all the actions that were taken," Encina said.

Because the 17-year-old is a minor, her identity is not being released. She was arrested and charged with second-degree assault.

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