Videos Show Cops And Teens In Huge Fight At Norristown Carnival

NORRISTOWN, PA — Multiple teens and police officers were injured and several arrests were made following a brawl in Norristown Saturday involving more than 50 adolescents, authorities said.

The incident, which occurred on the final night of the St. Francis of Assisi Carnival, has sparked concerns from the community about police violence toward the youths and youth violence toward the police as videos from the scene spread across social media.

Norristown Police said that when they arrived at the scene, they tried to break up the melee but were unsuccessful. In a statement issued Sunday, they said that the "crowd ignored all orders by the police and continued to fight."

When officers tried to intervene, they said they were "kicked, shoved, and punched" by people in the crowd.

In one part of the incident that was captured on video, a large group of teens surround a cop who is kneeling on the ground with one forearm around the upper chest and neck of a girl. Another girl approaches close and screams in the cop's face. The cop throws an arm out to either push her away or hit her, at which point the girl moves toward him.

In a second video that shows a different angle of the confrontation, the girl lands a few punches on the cop's face before she is pulled off:

The crowd then swarms in as police attempt to bring the situation under control, with several teens attempting to pull the cop off the girl. A third cop then arrives with what appears to be mace, and is able to warn off and scatter the crowd away without spraying it.

That interaction represented just one portion of the brawl, however. It remains unclear how the fight started, and other aspects of the event were not caught on camera, muddling the overall picture.

At a community forum held at Norristown's Municipal Hall Sunday afternoon, multiple residents expressed concern about the force used by officers on the scene. One resident said it was emblematic of mistreatment of African-American youths by law enforcement. Another argued that by the time police arrived, the fight was over — a point which contradicts the official police statement — and that they did more harm than good. Another argued that one of the officers should be suspended pending an investigation.

Police said that an investigation was underway. "We are committed to uncovering all of the relevant facts and will proceed in a transparent and impartial fashion," Chief Mark Talbot said.

Charges for the arrested individuals have not yet been announced.

This article will be updated as the story develops.