Girls Arrested, Teachers Hurt In School Melee

MAY 4--Eight teachers were injured yesterday trying to break up a high school brawl involving a quartet of female pugilists who are now facing multiple criminal charges in connection with the 7:30 AM melee.

The fight at Cheltenham High School in Wyncote, a Philadelphia suburb, began as students were headed to their first period classes. As seen in the above video, after two girls began throwing punches at each other, two more students joined the fray.

The fight, recorded by several onlookers, prompted one student to offer color commentary on the indignity suffered by one combatant: “Oh, shit! Her wig came off!”

When a substitute teacher sought to intercede, she apparently caught an overhand right (or elbow) intended for an opponent. The teacher crumpled to the floor with a concussion.

Police arrested the four students on a variety of charges, including assault and reckless endangerment. Three of the girls were charged as juveniles, while Amber Lewis, 18, was charged as an adult. Lewis is locked up in the Montgomery County jail in lieu of $10,000 bond. Two of the defendants are sisters.

In a letter to parents, Ray McFall, principal of the 1500-student school, referred to the initial fight as a “physical altercation,” adding that administrators would not tolerate fighting or “the filming of fights.” McFall added that, “Both behaviors are beneath us and reflect poorly on our larger population.” (1 page)