Posted on 02/03/2005 9:04:06 AM PST by KStorm
PRATTVILLE, Ala. (AP) - A fight broke out in the stands of a girls high school basketball game, prompting police to fire Tasers to stop it and clear the gym, authorities said. Nine people face charges.
Witnesses said Tuesday night's melee, involving dozens of fans, began in an upper deck and spilled onto the floor. It was apparently sparked by an earlier dispute between students of the two rival schools, Prattville and Stanhope Elmore.
"There were chairs being thrown and people running all over the place," said witness Stan Davis. "I grabbed my 8-year-old daughter and we just tried to stay out of the way."
"Initially, there were 30, then it started spreading like cockroaches," said another parent, Joanne Heningburg.
Arrest warrants were issued for three adults and six juveniles, including three teens taken into custody Tuesday night, District Attorney Randall Houston said Thursday. Among the charges were assault, disorderly conduct and refusing to obey an officer, he said.
There had been a fight between students at the two schools at a fast-food restaurant last week, authorities said.
"Apparently the same two groups met up at the basketball game tonight, and the altercation continued," Police Chief Alfred Wadsworth said.
Police hit some participants with Tasers, which can incapacitate a person with an electrical jolt, Wadsworth said.
The fight was captured on video and shown on television.
"People were screaming and running," Prattville cheerleader Cherish Cartee said. "Girls lost their cell phones. Keys got lost. It's something I will never forget."
LOL It's a statement on the state of todays youth!
As the mother of a teenaged daughter, this cracks me up too.
What a tragedy. To lose a cell phone is just such a traumatic event. Perhaps we should start a relief effort for them....
Geocities exceeded transfer
I saw the video of this violent outbreak last night and it was no joke! There wasn't just one chair blindly flung into this crowd ... I counted at least six chairs hurled up and out into the brawling mass ~ it was happening so fast I am pretty sure even more than six were thrown.
'Girls lost their cell phones', Beebers ok.
I'm surprised they didn't pull the old "It was just like being in Iraq".
Heh, heh. No, it's not just me.
BTW, my senior daughter plays varsity basketball. The reffing is terrible and the fans have come close to fights. One father from the opposing team, after the game, walked up to one of our players and spit on her.
Basketball is difficult because all the rules are so subjective. There is a fine line between a legal play and a fowl. And girls basketball seems to get the worst refs.
Bad calls take their tolls on both teams and their fans. But it's still just basketball.
I must admit however that I often think of the rules changes in the old movie "rollerball" as I watch girls basketball. They need to start wearing football uniforms for protection.
No, it's me too. The thought of it is about as funny as the time I saw a Japanese tourist in San Francisco drop his camera on the pavement while walking down Lombard Street. The look on his face was something I'll never forget. Two pretty Japanese girls tried desperately to console him, but without effect.
This is typical of kids sporting events. That's why all the hand wringing over the incident between Indiana and Detroit made me want to laugh.
You hand wringers have obviously watched very little high school or grammar school sporting events.
Ity's not hard to tel them apart, fowl usually have feathers.
Don't know where you are but this type of thing is anything but typical where I live. Students, parents and athletes are expected to behave with the consequences severe if they don't.
Well where do you live and what sports do you watch?
I have seen these kinds of melees at AYSO girls soccer games, not to mention little league.
I only live about 30 min. from P'ville. Didn't hear about this until this morning when Rick and Bubba talked about it on their radio program. I mean what in the world started this melee?
Just another fun game of BasketBrawl.
I live in a rural area. Highschool sports are big here. Good sportsmanship is the rule not the exception doesn't matter whether its boys or girls. Some grownups have tried to push the issue but they're either shown the rule book or the door.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.