JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Duval County School Board is implementing enhanced security measures at local high school football games following two incidents that happened in the last two months.
One week after a fight broke out at a Fletcher High School high school football against Sandalwood High School, students are still scared.
“It was pretty scary because we didn’t really know what was happening,” a student who wanted to remain anonymous told News4JAX.
The student, who is also in the band, said she would not be attending tonight’s game as a concern for her safety.
Last Friday, Neptune Beach police said a large fight broke out and people thought they heard a gunshot. According to police, there weren’t any shots fired but there was an arrest resisting an officer.
“I was scared. I was definitely scared. I was mainly scared for my kids because both my kids were away from me at the time,” the student’s mother said.
DCPS emailed families of students at Fletcher High School to provide an update on the fight and explain safety procedures at games.
One email said, in part, two cars affiliated with the people in the fights got pulled over and an AR-15-style rifle was found. They did add, the people in that car were in legal possessions of it.
The other email detailed the enhanced safety measures:
- All fans will be required to be in the stands watching the game. Hanging out at the fence or in common areas will not be allowed. Police or school administrators will ask all participants to take a seat in the stands unless they are entering the stadium, in the line for concessions, using the restrooms or exiting the facility. We also have a strict no re-entry policy. Any individual that does not comply with directions to move to the stands will be asked to leave the game. Police will intervene as needed.
- The same goes for the parking lot. Our expectation is that fans park safely, and then immediately begin moving toward the stadium. Gathering and socializing in the parking lot or sitting in cars before, during or after the game will not be allowed. Individuals gathering in the parking lot will be asked to enter the stadium or leave the premises. Again, police will intervene as needed.
- All fans must arrive prior to the second half. Entry into the stadium will not be allowed after half-time.
- We will continue to use our wand detectors to screen all people attending the game for firearms or other weapons, so please make sure to leave anything of that nature at home. Things like outside food and drinks, backpacks, and any type of illegal drugs or alcohol are also among items that are prohibited.
- And finally, for those of you who will be picking up your children after the game, we expect the game to end at approximately 9:00 p.m. Therefore, we request you be at the school by 8:30 p.m. to receive your child. We want to avoid having a large group of children waiting at the school/stadium in the dark for rides to arrive.
The Fletcher High School incident isn’t the only situation to happen this year.
In August, there was a shooting outside of First Coast High School. A 15-year-old was accused of opening fire into a crowd of people leaving the game, prompting police to shoot the teen.
In 2018, there was a shooting death at the Raines High School football game. Following that shooting, DCPS rescheduled some football games for safety reasons.
Some games were moved to earlier start times while others were moved to Saturday mornings.
The sophomore’s mom said she’s not sure if the district needs to revisit that idea for this school year.
“I don’t know about changing the game times because that might be hard for working parents to go,” she said. “I would love for that you happen but I don’t think that’s realistic.”
The district sent the following response when News4JAX asked if a time change is possible for football games this year.
“While we can’t speculate or answer hypothetical questions, safety is always our highest goal, and we will continue to monitor our games and determine whether modifications to our security plans need to be made.”