Police Officer, Teacher Injured In Westhill HS 'Food Fight': PD

STAMFORD, CT — A total of 10 Westhill High School students have been arrested following an investigation into a staged "food fight" at the school in which a School Resource Officer and a teacher were injured, according to Stamford Police Capt. Richard Conklin and Lt. Michael A. Noto.

Officer Anna Edwards, who was struck in the head with a full can of soda, suffered a laceration and concussion in the April 12 melee, and an unnamed female teacher also suffered injuries when she was trampled by a rush of students. Edwards needed to be transported to the Stamford Hospital Emergency Room for treatment.

Because all of the 10 arrested students are juveniles, their identities were not disclosed.

"The charges these students face range from Riot in the 1st degree, Breach of Peace to Reckless Endangerment and Assault on a Police Officer," Conklin and Noto stated.

Students had been planning the food fight on social media before the Friday incident, which kicked off at about 1:30 p.m.

During the fracas, which included some actual fights, hundreds of students ran out of the school and many threw eggs, water and cans of soda.

"The two Stamford Police School Resource Officers along with school security and staff were not able to quell the out of control crowd," police said.

School Resource Officer Felix Martinez, Stamford Police Officer Luis Serna and other members of the department "spent countless hours investigating and reviewing security video of this incident, in order to identity the suspects, all of whom are scheduled to appear in Juvenile Court in the near future.

"We realize that the citizens, parents, teachers and vast majority of the students do not condone this behavior," Conklin and Noto said. "This is not the learning environment we expect and demand for our children in this City."

They added, "We urge all parents to monitor their children's social media. We ask all students if they see something on social media that concerns them to report it the school administration and/or the police department. We all want our children to enjoy a safe and secure learning environment. We all have a responsibility to this end. The Stamford Police Department will be meeting with the school administration to discuss how to better avoid such circumstances in the future."