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Police Frustrated By Turf Wars At Cleveland High School
POSTED: 12:08 pm EDT October 29,
2009
UPDATED: 5:18 pm EDT October 29,
2009
CLEVELAND -- Parents, students and police say the situation with ongoing fights at Cleveland's Lincoln West High School is getting out of control.Another outbreak occurred on Thursday, sending students running for safety and officers rushing to the scene as teens poured into the streets.Dozens of officers went to the school when at least four students began fighting in the cafeteria.Students said a boy punched two girls, and one of them was pregnant.Cleveland police said there were several fights going on at the same time on Thursday and another fight occurred down the street.Police and the Cuyahoga County Sheriff's Department were issuing an arrest warrant a couple of blocks away so officers were able to rush to the school.Police said a man picking up a student was arrested after they found drugs and four shanks, or homemade knives, in his car.Neighbors, students and police said the fights are out of control."Some day we have 20 to 25 officers combined. That's not normal. We're trying to keep a lid on a boiling pot right," said Lt. Frank Bolon.Bolon said after a student is suspended from another school the school system moves them to Lincoln West because there's room, and that's causing turf trouble in the school."We now have gangs - gang members, gangbangers from across the city, that have been expelled or suspended from their schools and they put them in Lincoln West, so we have the existing gangs and now we have gangs from east side and further west. They're now fighting for turf in the school here," said Bolon.A representative for the Cleveland Metropolitan School District said school leaders are aware of the fights and are working to correct the situation.
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