Fight In School Parking Lot Prompts Arrest Of 3 Adults: Anne Arundel County Police

ODENTON, MD — A recent fight between Anne Arundel County students led to a physical altercation between their adult relatives in the school parking lot, officials said.

Police said they arrested three unidentified adults and charged them with second-degree assault and disorderly conduct after the scuffle. Officers did not release the names of the accused adults to protect the identities of the minors involved.

The incident started Thursday and continued into Friday at Arundel Middle School in Odenton.

Thursday

Principal George Lindley said in a letter to families that four students got in a fight during Thursday's dismissal.

Administrators said they and the school resource officer broke up the fight quickly. Dismissal continued without much delay.

The families of the students involved started to arrive at the school soon after. Lindley said several relatives "became agitated with each other, and emotions began to rise." The school resource officer called for additional police because the tension was escalating.

"The emotional exchange of words continued and as an additional precaution, especially because we had students still at our building for afterschool activities, I asked for more officers to respond to the school," the principal said. "They did so quickly, and I thank the Police Department for their response."

The families regained their composure without any physical contact and left the school grounds. Lindley said he held the afterschool students inside momentarily and dismissed them after a few minutes without any interaction with the involved families.

Friday

The families returned to campus Friday for follow-up meetings. The principal said the meetings were intentionally scheduled so the families would not be on campus at the same time, but they still ended up interacting in the parking lot.

Lindley did not go into specifics about what happened when the families saw each other again, only noting that it was problematic.

Patch asked the Anne Arundel County Police Department for clarification.

"We can confirm three adults were arrested as a result of the altercation in the school parking lot after a meeting about the behavior of their children," police spokesperson Marc Limansky told Patch in a Monday email.

The police department added that this family fight happened Friday around 8:30 a.m. Officers said everybody involved in the fight was a relative of a student, but they were not all parents of a student.

The principal said there were additional officers at Friday's dismissal as a precaution.

School Leaders React

Lindley emphasized that students inside the building were not in harm's way during the Thursday and Friday encounters.

The families never showed or used any weapons, the principal said.

"While I understand that fear among families and while some students in classrooms with windows could certainly see what was occurring, I want to assure you instruction continued on a normal schedule inside and our students and staff were not in any danger," Lindley said in a second letter to families.

The principal said he "will take appropriate actions with regard to the students involved" and "will also take appropriate steps with the adults involved."

Bob Mosier, a spokesperson for Anne Arundel County Public Schools, called this "an unfortunate incident between students that was made worse by the repeated involvement of adults."

Lindley went on to thank those who are behaving appropriately.

"I want to emphasize that the vast majority of our students and families at Arundel Middle School are exhibiting behaviors appropriate to a place of learning," the principal said. "I applaud them and encourage everyone not to let incidents like yesterday and today become the things for which our school is known. There are great things happening here and we all need to support our students fully."

Lindley asked families to talk about the fight with their students. He reminded them that school counselors are always available to talk.

Students should report any safety concerns to a responsible adult immediately. They can also anonymously call the Safe Schools Maryland Tip Line at 833-MD-B-SAFE. That line is available 24/7.

"I simply ask all of us to think about the message our actions send to our young people," Lindley said. "We need to be examples for them."

Lindley's Thursday letter to families is posted here. His Friday letter is viewable at this link.