Three Homestead police officers were injured and four people arrested Friday in the second of two fights that erupted after classes at Steel Valley Middle School and High School.
Officers from at least nine communities were called for assistance about 4 p.m. when the fight, which witnesses said began between two middle school girls near the Charlie Batch 16th Avenue Playground, escalated as bystanders became involved.
One officer was taken to UPMC Presbyterian hospital in Oakland for treatment after he was struck by a juvenile, Homestead police Cpl. John Kaschauer said. The other injured officers did not require hospital treatment, he said.
The boy who struck the officer and two girls were taken into custody along with a man believed to be a relative of one of the girls, Kaschauer said.
The man, who was taken to UPMC Presbyterian after being subdued by a Taser, will be charged with aggravated assault, the corporal said. The others face juvenile charges.
Kaschauer said one fight broke out shortly after classes were dismissed at the two schools on Main Street in Munhall, nearly a mile away.
The altercation was broken up, and the crowd dispersed before trouble erupted a second time.
"There had to be 100 kids here. They were everywhere. It was amazing," said Judi Schienle, who lives across the street from the playground, a popular gathering spot for young people.
Kaschauer said as police tried to break up the fights, several bystanders surrounded the officers, prompting a call for backup.
"There were a whole bunch of people down here," agreed Tiffany Johnson, 16. "There were 60 to 80 kids."
Residents and police said it's not unusual for trouble to erupt around the playground.
"There's fights here all the time," said Johnson.
