Dougherty Schools Police investigate multiple fights at Westover High School

ALBANY — The Dougherty County School System was responding on Thursday to a rash of fights the previous day at Westover High School that have sparked parental concern.

Videos of incidents, taken by students on their cellphones, have appeared online, and those are part of the ongoing investigation that was underway on Thursday as security was heightened at the campus.

“We have increased police presence at the school, just to make our students, staff and parents feel more safe,” J.D. Sumner, district communications manager for the school system, said. “That’s part of normal operating procedures. Any time there’s kind of a feeling of unrest or people feel uneasy, we try to enhance security as much as we can.”

Dougherty County School System Police Department officers were joined by Albany Police Department officers at the campus on Thursday.

In addition to students who have posted videos of fights online, parents have made social media posts related to incidents at the high school, the system said in a news release.

Sumner said he is not aware of the cause of the multiple fights or whether street gang affiliation was part of the equation. He also did not immediately know how many incidents occurred or the number of students who were sent home, although he confirmed there probably were several told not to return to campus on Thursday.

“They’re still trying to sort all that out,” Sumner said of school system police, who were going through videos posted and school surveillance to gain more information. “All that’s part of the investigation.”

For the most part, it was business as usual at the school Thursday, other than the increased police presence, Sumner said.

“Everything is normal except a (number) of parents showing up to get their kids out,” he added.

The Albany Police Department has not been requested to assist with the incidents but was providing support to the school system’s police department, Albany Chief Michael Persley said in an email response to The Albany Herald on Thursday.

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