Leaders react after violence at Hamilton, Bay View schools



MILWAUKEE -- Milwaukee police arrested a Hamilton High School student Monday after the student allegedly attacked an assistant principal. Police say the student was arrested for felony battery to a teacher, and they say an officer was injured during this incident. This is just the latest in a series of violent incidents at Milwaukee-area schools, after incidents at both James Madison High School and Washington High School in recent weeks.

In Tuesday's incident, Milwaukee Public School officials say the student was in the process of being suspended, and picked up an object and hit the assistant principal. "It's terrifying because you don't want to see that with the youth and the kids, because you go to school to learn and to teach," Hamilton parent Darrick Pinion said.

MPS says the student has already been removed from the school. The student is being placed in an alternative behavior program at another facility that's designed to handle behavior problems.

Monday, police say they arrested a group of students for fighting at Bay View High School. 13 people were cited for disorderly conduct and fighting, and were released to their parents. No one was injured in that incident.

Milwaukee Public School officials say they've increased security at Bay View High School after Monday's incident. "We are constantly evaluating our safety procedures to make sure we're doing what's right to keep kids safe," Tony Tagliavia with MPS said.

Bay View High School is in Alderman Tony Zielinski's district. He says he's been hearing from parents about the fights. "They're very concerned. This is supposed to be a learning environment, and we're not supposed to have kids engaging in this type of activity, and this type of activity cannot be tolerated. We're working on plans to hold these kids accountable for their behavior," Zielinski said. Zielinski had a meeting with school officials to work on an action plan to address the issue. Zielinski says he'll meet with them again to follow up.

Parents say changes are necessary to ensure the safety of students. "Hoping they change some things around to make it safer for everyone," Pinion said.