JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A fight among high schoolers, which was captured on cellphone video, was one that a local mom said she tried to prevent.
A Westside mother claimed she caught wind of threats against her daughter through social media. She said she took that concern to her daughter's school, and she was turned away and told to keep her daughter away from school until next week.
Cherica Daniels-West met News4Jax outside her home after talking to police and filing a report.
Daniels-West said she went to her 14-year-old's school with disturbing social media. It was an image of her daughter on the ground and a text about fighting. She asked a counselor, security and then the principal for help.
"I'm asking him, 'Find out who these girls are, so we can prevent the kids from fighting.' These are kids. Don't nobody need to be in jail, nobody needs to get hurt," she said.
Daniels-West said she spent hours at the school and didn't get the help she wanted to prevent a fight. After school, her daughter ended up in a confrontation that was caught on cellphone video.
This is exactly what Daniels-West said she did not want to happen. In her opinion, the school failed her and her ninth-grade daughter.
"So we have an adult involved -- this girl, her friends, guys and his friends hitting our kids. So we didn't prevent anything," Daniels-West said.
Duval County Public Schools released a statement explaining the broader situation with bullying:
"Once a report of bullying or cyberbullying is made to school administration, the school will conduct an investigation. If the allegations meet the criteria for bullying, then the students engaged will be disciplined according to the student code of conduct."
Initially the Duval County School Board told News4Jax the principal was not aware of the situation. On Friday, formal complaints had been received, so an investigation will begin.
The district shares on its website the district's Code of Conduct, as well as information and resources about bullying and cyberbullying.