Girl, 16, Severely Hurt In Gary School Fight
GARY, Ind. (CBS) - A freshman at Roosevelt High School in Gary, Ind., has been hospitalized since a lunchroom fight with another student earlier this week.
Alisha Hardin, 16, required emergency surgery at Methodist Hospitals in Gary before she was moved to Riley Hospital for Children for reconstructive surgery on bones around her eyes, which were crushed when she fought a girl during the lunch period, Rhonda Hardin said.
The girl's grandmother was with the teen in Indianapolis on Tuesday afternoon when her condition was reviewed.
"The doctor told my mom Alisha could have died from this. My heart's still racing," Rhonda said.
Gary Community School Corp. spokeswoman Sarita Stevens said officials are conducting an internal investigation of the Monday incident, which is the latest in "an ongoing situation."
The other student, a 15-year-old girl, said Hardin threw a pop on her, and that she may or may not have hit Hardin with her elbow.
Gary Community School Corp. spokeswoman Sarita Stevens also said Hardin was the instigator in the incident, which occurred in the bathroom "out of sight of supervision."
Both girls were arrested earlier in the school after a prior violent confrontation, Stevens said.
Since then, school officials tried conflict resolution, which included bringing the girls' parents into the school to address problems between the two. The other student is 15 years old.
"The police are not involved yet," Stevens said. Juvenile division detectives were attempting to obtain a report and begin an investigation into the assault Tuesday evening.
Both girls have been undergoing counseling to resolve their conflict, she said.
Gary police say they have not received a report from the school in this matter. Seven security guards, some sworn Gary officers and others reserves, are assigned to Roosevelt.
Rhonda Hardin said her daughter attended Charter School of the Dunes last year and had no problems like the ones she's facing at Roosevelt High School.
"This has been an ongoing situation since September," she said.
Alisha's mother said none of her other children attend Roosevelt. "I don't even like it there," she said.
The Northwest Indiana Post-Tribune contributed to this report, via the Sun-Times Media Wire
(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2010. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
