Video of brawl following Elizabeth High School football game goes viral, prompts calls for more district precautions
ELIZABETH, N.J. -- Video of a high school fight in which two kids were injured is spreading on social media and has some New Jersey parents on edge.
CBS2's Thalia Perez has more on parents' concerns.
"The sad part about it is these are young people who, without any remorse, stomp, kick repeatedly a gentleman that we saw on the ground, already unconscious, and other kids jumping on top of each other," said Salaam Ismial, director of National United Youth Council Inc.
As disturbing as the video is to watch, police said the brawl left two brothers, ages 17 and 19, hospitalized. Police said it happened on Sept. 16 in the McDonald's parking lot on Fillmore Street just steps from Williams Field following a football game.
"It's really bad. Me as a parent, I have a right to know that my kid is safe," parent Marco Flores said.
Police said the brothers were jumped by the group and have been uncooperative with detectives, despite repeated attempts to convince them otherwise.
Ismial said he believes the kids are fearful of retaliation by the suspects.
"When you see that video and you see the kid is laid out unconscious and they're still pummeling on top of this kid, I mean, he could have died," Ismial said.
He is calling on the school board step up, adding he plans to demand at Thursday night's school board meeting that counselors and social workers be brought on campus to help out.
In a statement, Pat Politano, an Elizabeth School District spokeswoman, said, "Last week's incident occurred off school property and well after the conclusion of the game. It is being investigated by the Elizabeth Police Department," adding, "To assist the Elizabeth police and district security personnel, the start time for the two remaining home games has been moved to 11:30 a.m. on Saturdays. Students attending must be accompanied by a parent or guardian."
It's unclear what prompted the brawl or if it was connected to a previous incident.
McDonald's employees say they'd like to see police do more in this area.
