Student brawl shuts down Calabasas High School
More than a dozen students involved in scuffle
By Stephanie Bertholdo  bertholdo@theacorn.com

A brawl at Calabasas High School on Fri., April 25 brought out police and prompted school administrators to lock down the campus until it was determined students would be safe, a Las Virgenes Unified School District spokesperson said.

Following a noon pep rally at the school, a fight involving a reported 15 students broke out in the parking lot and other areas of the campus, LVUSD Superintendent Donald Zimring said.

Deputies from the Lost Hills Sheriff's Station were called to the scene as students were hustled into their fifth-period classes. Principal Vince Jantz ordered the school into a "lockdown" mode to prevent escalation.

Despite rumors that racial or religious tension might have given rise to the fight--the school has a large number of students of Middle Eastern descent--J.T. Manwell, a detective with the Lost Hills Juvenile Intervention Team, denied that suggestion.

"(The fight) started with two kids and ended up with a bunch of kids," Manwell said. The fight was ignited over allegations that earlier in the week some students had called police to break up a party they believed was "getting out of hand," Manwell said. Animosity ensued.

"There were no weapons, no outsiders, no serious injuries," Manwell said.

"Ten kids were retained so we could sort out what happened and stress that there is zero tolerance for violence on campus," the deputy said.

One student allegedly struck a female employee who works in the school office. Zimring said several students sustained minor injuries.

All students involved in the fight were suspended, Jantz said, noting that such conflict is uncommon at the school.

"We don't have these kinds of things occurring at school," Jantz said.

The school district and the sheriff's department helped the school staff organize an early release of students. Seniors were allowed to go home shortly after 2 p.m.

"The school administration team along with the entire staff, (including) teachers, counselors, office staff and campus supervisors, did an outstanding job managing the incident," Zimring said. Lost Hills deputies remained on campus Monday as a precaution.