A wild brawl at a Raleigh, North Carolina, high school left a 15-year-old stabbed to death.
A 14-year-old has been charged with murder in connection with Monday’s incident at Southeast Raleigh Magnet High School, according to WRAL. Police said a 16-year-old was injured in the mayhem. Police did not identify any of the teens involved.
Police were called at about 11 a.m. when a school resource officer said a stabbing had taken place.
Student is stabbed to death and another is injured at Southeast Raleigh Magnet High School in NC: Suspect is arrested https://t.co/rLdJe2XtaC #US #arrested
— WhatsNew2Day (@whatsn2day) November 27, 2023
“He’s losing consciousness right now. We’re in the main gym,” a woman’s voice was heard saying over law enforcement radio.
Cherelle McLaughlin, who said her son was involved in the stabbing, said he acted in self-defense.
“I don’t believe he took the knife into school,” McLaughlin said. “I believe he got the knife from somebody in the school because he did not go to school with a knife. I dropped him off at school. He did not go to school with it.”
WARNING: The following video contains violence and language some readers may find disturbing.
The moment a deadly fight breaks out at the Raleigh Magnet High School in Raleigh, NC on Monday.
— The Post Millennial (@TPostMillennial) November 28, 2023
“The whole situation is terrible,” McLaughlin said, according to the New York Post.
“I feel bad for the other family, but in return, I feel bad for my son because he was fighting for his life. It wasn’t a fair fight. I just don’t think it should have happened like that,” she said.
In video of the incident, a student in a red hoodie is initially punched by a student in a dark sweatshirt before the fight between the two spilled into the gym.
WARNING: The following video contains violence and language some readers may find disturbing.
Student dies of stab wounds after a fight at high school in Raleigh, North Carolina.
Other students cheered on the fight and filmed it for their stupid social media accounts. What a disaster. pic.twitter.com/igd6k52PkV
— Citizen Free Press (@CitizenFreePres) November 28, 2023
“There were a lot of people screaming and crying,” student Daniela Fortin said, according to WTVD.
“There were a lot of people around him, and they were very concerned about him, and it was very scary,” Fortin said of the student who died, calling the fight “a very traumatic experience.”
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“There were videos of what happened … I don’t know how to explain it, but it was so sad seeing all of the videos,” she said.
Wake County Superintendent Robert Taylor said the district will review its safety protocols after the stabbing.
“Schools should be a safe haven for our students and staff. What happened here today is unacceptable,” he said. “As superintendent, I can tell you, there is nothing more important than the well-being and the safety of our students.”
Taylor said school resource officials are allowed to search a student if there is a “reasonable suspicion that a student has a weapon,” but that schools do not have metal detectors.
