Kingston Police warn parents of organized fights among local teens

Kingston Police have issued an alert to parents of secondary school aged teenagers in the area, informing them of staged fights that have been taking place throughout the community.

Organized through social media, mainly Snapchat, these fights are openly organized for teens that simply want to fight someone else, according to a release from Kingston Police, dated Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2020. Often, the fights are in regard to disputes over a boyfriend or girlfriend. On other occasions these fights originate after an individual or group bullies an individual into becoming involved in an altercation, say Kingston Police.

Large gatherings can occur at these fights, as they are usually planned well in advance, and advertised through social circles. According to the report, some of the fights begin as one on one consensual altercations, but have been known to quickly escalate to involve multiple individuals attacking one sole victim.

During these altercations, which generally occur after school hours or on weekends, some victims are even robbed of personal property following the fight, police say. Many of these fights, if not all of them, are recorded on cell phone video by others in attendance and then posted on social media platforms.

Kingston Police say that although this is not a completely new phenomenon, lately the fights have been predominantly occurring in Kingston’s west end and have even taken place at the mall and library. Police are concerned that one of the involved participants will be seriously injured in one of these confrontations and are asking parents to sit down with their teens to discuss the consequences of being involved in these kinds of activities.

Not only can one or more of the participants be charged with a provincial trespassing charge, depending on where the fight has taken place, but criminal charges of causing a disturbance by fighting and assault could also be applicable and warranted given the circumstances, police say.

Please have that one on one talk with your teen tonight.