A brawl between the football teams of Gaithersburg and Northwest high schools during Friday night’s game led to the arrests of four minors and one man, according to Gaithersburg police.
Gaithersburg police were called to Gaithersburg High School around 8:20 p.m. Friday for a report of a fight at the game. Police said that while officers tried to break up the fight, other fights broke out.
One school staff member was treated for a non-life-threatening injury and a police officer was assaulted but did not require treatment, according to police. Another victim was treated for lacerations.
Kornel Robinson, 19, of Germantown, was arrested and faces charges including second-degree assault, disorderly conduct, intoxicated endangerment and failure to obey a lawful order, Gaithersburg police spokesman Dan Lane wrote Monday in an email to Bethesda Beat.
“The charges were the result of fights that occurred off of the field and as crowds were dispersing,” he wrote.
Court records indicate that Robinson posted $1,500 bond Saturday. Attorney information was not listed for Robinson.
The others arrested were two 13-year-old boys and two 17-year-old girls, according to Lane. They were all released to their parents.
One of the minors was charged with first-degree assault and the other three were charged with second-degree assault, according to Lane.
After the fight, Montgomery County Public Schools suspended the football teams at both schools, stating in a community message that it “strongly condemns the abhorrent and unacceptable behavior” that occurred at the game. The message said the school system is “swiftly moving to develop and implement enhanced measures for safety at any athletic event and will communicate those to our community in the coming days.”
According to Lane, the security teams at both Gaithersburg and Northwest high schools will be “conducting an administrative review regarding students and staff involved in the fighting.”
Chris Cram, an MCPS spokesman, could not immediately be reached for comment Monday.
In October 2021, a fight broke out between a group of students during a game between Seneca Valley and Northwest high schools, both in Germantown, injuring a 15-year-old boy, WTOP reported. Due to that fight, a successive game between Northwest and Quince Orchard High School in Gaithersburg was moved to an earlier start time.
Dan Schere can be reached at Daniel.schere@bethesdamagazine.com
