Southpinellas: When lights go out, students fling food

By Abhi Raghunathan and Thomas C. Tobin, Times Staff Writers
Published February 28, 2008

ST. PETERSBURG - After the lights went out at Bay Point Middle School Tuesday afternoon during a statewide power outage, the food began to fly.

And one 13-year-old boy was attacked by several girls, who kicked him, punched him and bloodied his nose.

Gail Manner, 51, said her son David, 13, and his circle of friends had been bullied by a small group of girls for months because he and his friends wear tight pants and color their hair. She said food had been thrown at her son during the ruckus, and that an apple hit his girlfriend in the head.

Manner said she was upset at school officials and may send her son to a different school.

"It was completely out of control," she said. "They told me that it was an isolated incident, that everything's going to stay the same."

Police classified David Manner's injury as minor; the only treatment required was an ice pack for his nose. Police say the girls may have targeted Manner because they thought he threw food at them; Manner's mother said that wasn't the case.

A possible misdemeanor charge of simple battery was referred to the State Attorney's Office against one of the girls. The girl is not being named because she is a minor. Police are still investigating.

Some parents said the fight is representative of their concerns with discipline issues at the school. Fights were the leading cause for suspensions in Pinellas middle schools last school year. The district reported 1,242 middle school suspensions for fighting in 2006-07.

"Anybody who sends their kids there or teaches there should be concerned about their health, education and welfare," said Joe Hausen, 46, who has a 13-year-old daughter at the school.

District spokeswoman Andrea Zahn gave a written response to the parent comments: "The school has new leadership and the principal has not been contacted by parents with concerns about the school environment. In fact, she has received positive feedback about the climate at the school this year."

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Comments on this article

by Jen	04/16/08 08:13 PM
I used to go to this school and I have a lot of friends here. I heard about it from a friend and im mad that nobody did anything to stop it before it got this far, but those girls are mean to do that!!!

by Anonomous	03/12/08 08:20 PM
I am a student that attends BPMS and that fight that happened was no minor fight.And that was not the only fight there were multiple ones in a row.Oh i just feel bad for David.If he wants to dress how he wants to then leave him alone! It was bad.

by bpms student	03/05/08 10:34 PM
why can't the admin. or the school board protect us? im going to school to learn not to fight or to be picked on by other students. i am actually a little bit afraid to go to school sometimes because of whats been happening.

by Mad Mom	03/05/08 08:21 PM
There was also a gun threat the same day. It was sent via text to many students. I went to office and verified the truth of this situation and it was verified. There was nothing in the voice mail from the school eluding to this either.

by Mad Mom	03/05/08 08:17 PM
My son also has horrible problems at BPMS, I have met with counselors and teachers and they have been no help. They are receiving funds for a Bulling program and have yet to implement it. Principal's excuses are sad.

by disturbed in st. pete	03/05/08 07:51 PM
james we expect them to act like the young adults they are.are they gonna fight althrough their lives when someone looks at them wrong or does something that displeases them? lets think about someone else for a change. try being a roll model for once

by BPMS student	03/05/08 05:08 PM
i am a student at bay point and the injury was not "minor". David was beat up by more than a couple of girls. and he was left in a puddle of blood. but my question is...where were the teachers when this happened?they were in their classes not helping

by mad parent	03/04/08 10:09 PM
when will the pre teen trouble makers be held responsible for their actions? life is all about choices.if they cant make the right ones now, then when? zero tolerance should be upheld. how can a person learn if they are too busy watching their back?

by student at BPMS	03/03/08 05:23 PM
Dear Julia...even if the fundamental schools have better displine...our school has better programs. Plus, in the real life u will encounter with many people that are not well displined, so u should start to deal with those people in school.

by LD	03/03/08 02:07 PM
To concerned grandparent, please call the SB authorities, the principal, the police (not the school police) about the text msg. The bottom line is safety for the kids. PLEASE report it. The school HAS to deal with this incident & all others at BPM.

by ME	03/03/08 12:57 PM
JEEPERS! they were weird and they DID throw stuff at those girls maybe they were wrong to jump him because it was 1 girls fight but still he had it coming. Maybe if they weren't acting like bisexuals nobody would bother them. It wasn't a gay bashing.

by Paula	03/03/08 09:41 AM
My two children have been attacked at BPMS. Cover up by the SRO and administration has been standard procedure. Clayton Wilcox wants fewer suspensions at the expense of the innocent. The scool board is very aware of this and turns a blind eye.

by Weary Mom	03/03/08 09:34 AM
David was sent out of the cafeteria that day after being attacked and was cornered in the 8th grade hall and was beaten again by the usual suspects until he couldn't walk.Another girl was bloodied. The school is unable/unwilling to control the gangs.

by crystal	03/01/08 06:26 PM
i am an 8th grader at bay point middle. i was there the day the food fight. it wasnt minor thats for sure. the were then more than 1 fight. there was a couple in a row.There was also blood everywhere. in the bathroom on the floor. this was not minor.

by jerry	03/01/08 08:17 AM
well its time to place camera's in certain places in the schools ,,i thought i would never say that but these kids havn't a clue, as to what the future holds.. oh yea a frendly food fight will haunt ya when you removed from the school for startin it

by fradie	03/01/08 08:14 AM
sexualy fustration? this is why we need to teach sex ed,, and get there minds on something they can use,,,you wanna teach these type of kids about sex...oh our poor dogs, cats ,,cows ,anything that moves will be in trouble,,no parenting is the real p

by Person	02/29/08 11:34 PM
I go to Bay Point and was in the cafeteria, when it happened and I did not throw any food,I found some cover behind a wall and me and my friends just ate our lunches.Eventually it got so bad we had to get outside. BUT, NOT ALL THE STUDENTS THREW FOOD

by BPMS STUDENT	02/29/08 11:26 PM
I go to Bay Point, the school is not that bad,(depending on your experiences) I have to stay the food fight was pretty bad. But, it to say its just Bay Point that has behavior problems is just wrong.

by James	02/29/08 10:29 PM
I'm a student at bpms. I mean really what do you excpect from a bunch of 8th graders when the cameras aren't working.

by Essence	02/29/08 07:36 PM
I beg to differ Bay piont middle school is an awesome school my child is in the magnet program there and she said the young man was throughing food and cursing people out for hitting his girlfriend

by Concerned Grandparent	02/29/08 07:24 PM
When will the school system do something about the violence in our schools? A text message has been making the rounds to BPMS students and parents about a student bringing a gun to school next Thursday. How safe will school be on this day?

by jan	02/29/08 04:24 AM
What do you expect middle school students in the lunchroom to do when there is a power outage...sit there like little well-behaved adults(as if WE are all that well-behaved)? Wipe the food off, clean up the blood, go back to class and learn.

by Cecelia	02/28/08 10:21 PM
If someone would have done something about it the FIRST time David was beat up, this could have been prevented. But these girls always pull the race card, I know, because I used to go to BPMS, but I moved. They used to throw things at me and David.

by Erika	02/28/08 10:01 PM
Police reports stated the injury is minor. However, it is up to the parent to make sure nothing was broken during this altercation.

by Answer	02/28/08 09:08 PM
Dear ?, just sitting means you are a target for having food thrown at you? Nice. Please pay attention in school so you can learn proper spelling and grammar. Your lack of education is glaring. Less food throwing and more English class please.

by Teacher	02/28/08 08:05 PM
The reason so many students behave inappropriately nowadays in school is because there are no meaningful consequences for their bad behavior, either at school or at home.

by ?	02/28/08 07:37 PM
these kids are really weird anyway. err body got up and they were the only ones sitting. they had it coming if they think wer not gonna throw food at a bunch of emo kids siitin in the middle of a food fight

by Concerned Parent	02/28/08 07:25 PM
Andrea Zahn has to get her head out of the sand. Go to the school - when she is not expected - and walk the halls, the lunch room, a classroom to see for herself what is going on. Don't take the word of anybody! This schol has major problems.

by Amanda	02/28/08 06:41 PM
i go to bay point and was there for the food fight, i was by the door the whole time. it was not a fun experience.

by raven	02/28/08 06:01 PM
I am a student at Bay Point Middle School, and I did not like the article you wrote about my friends. Honestly, do call a "minor" injury someone with a bloody nose who left a puddle of blod in the hallway? The whole experience was quite frightening.

by Kyla	02/28/08 06:00 PM
this is a watered-down verson of the story, these girls are evil and mean, they have slapped horrible smelling rags into our faces, screamed into our faces, and contanstantly trying to start a fight, this isnt just another middle school fight!

by David	02/28/08 05:55 PM
this wasn't an "isolated" problem. it keeps happening and it's not going to stop.

by Happy Parent	02/28/08 04:12 PM
Thanks to School VOUCHER I don't have to send my child to Pinellas Schools. And yes, Discipline starts in the home!

by Julia	02/28/08 04:12 PM
This is why I tried so hard to get my kids into fundamental schools. So the bad kids can be kicked out. It just happened in my child's class - the class bully was kicked out. Now the class can learn in peace. If only more schools were this way!

by mike	02/28/08 03:20 PM
In this story you neglected to tell that one boy threatened to bring a gun to school. On my space, several students stated they were afraid to go to school. The boy on my space then stated he did not have a gun. Many students did not go to school.

Schools

When lights go out, students fling food

Bay Point Middle parents say fighting amid Tuesday's blackout highlights a larger issue.