Fight prompts changes at DeKaney High School

HOUSTON

This was no five-minute fight. It was a brawl that lasted more than half an hour. Parents we talked to on Friday night welcomed changes in how the school is run.

It was student cell phone video of the brawl that unnerved some parents.

"It scared me, it scared me," one parent said.

"Really bad, really bad," Dekaney High School parent Randy Caraway said.

The principal at the high school is now making changes after Thursday's brawl, which lasted 40 minutes, left blood on the floor and two students transported to the hospital.

Students say they've already noticed a change.

"It's pretty common but like, after it happened, it doesn't happen anymore," Dekaney High School student Rodniqua Gould said.

An investigation into the bloody brawl by the administration and Spring ISD district police revealed they had too many students in the downstairs hallway at once, and when one student punched another, it sparked multiple fights.

"I really believe it was just a one-time deal. Someone got out of hand, some knucklehead and with friends around, you know everything, it all happened," Caraway said.

In a statement released to parents, principal Delie Loyde says, "I am adjusting schedules for when students transition to control the number of students in the hallway during the school day. In addition, I am increasing adult supervision throughout the hallway during transitions."

Parents are welcoming the new policy and hope the brawls are behind them.

"The more people we have, the more adults we have in the classrooms and in the halls, we'll make it better," Caraway said.

In all, 19 students were suspended or sent to an alternative school. One of those students was arrested by police for refusing to obey an officer.