after a large gathering at Curtis Hixon Park in downtown Tampa Friday night<\/a> turned chaotic.<\/p>\nTampa police said 22 people between the ages of 12 and 21 were arrested after fights and other disruptions broke out around 9:30 p.m.<\/p>\n
Body-worn camera video captured people pulling and punching each other as officers responded to the park. Aerial footage also showed large crowds gathered in the area.<\/p>\n
Authorities said they confiscated two guns and a car connected to the incident.<\/p>\n
Charges for the 22 include affray, possession of narcotics, resisting without violence, and unlawful possession of a weapon.<\/p>\n
\u201cNothing good comes after a certain time of night,\u201d Luis Martinez said.<\/p>\n
Martinez, who has two children, believes stronger supervision may help prevent future incidents like these.<\/p>\n
\u201cParenting has, over the years, there\u2019s too many kids controlling their parents, and not parents controlling their kids,\u201d Martinez said.<\/p>\n
Freddy Barton, executive director of youth violence prevention organization Safe and Sound Hillsborough, said parents need to know where their children are.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat 12-year-old has the right to say, \u2018I\u2019m getting ready to go hang out and go God knows where,\u2019 and their parent doesn\u2019t know where they are?\u201d Barton said.<\/p>\n
Barton added communities must address problems happening at home and in neighborhoods to prevent incidents like this from continuing.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have to understand that if we do not address the home environment, if we do not address the community environment, we\u2019re going to hit the reset button every single day,\u201d Barton said.<\/p>\n
Barton said gatherings like these are not unique to Hillsborough County and are happening across the country. He said parents should monitor social media, talk with their children and securely store firearms.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese takeovers are not limited to Hillsborough County,\u201d Barton said. \u201cThey\u2019re happening everywhere. It\u2019s imperative that we\u2019re looking at social media, talking to our kids, and most importantly, if you own a firearm, secure these things.\u201d<\/p>\n
Barton also said parents must take greater responsibility instead of relying on law enforcement, schools, or community organizations to solve the problem.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have got to get parents to be parents right now,\u201d Barton said. \u201cWe can\u2019t blame this on law enforcement. They didn\u2019t say that there weren\u2019t enough law enforcement or there weren\u2019t enough police present. We need more parents present. We can\u2019t put this on the school district and say we need to have more programs. We need to have things. We can\u2019t put this on the community organizations. We first have to start in the home, in the community, and parents need to police their own children.\u201d<\/p>\n
Barton said Safe and Sound Hillsborough operates a youth gun offender program for children as young as 11 and 12 years old who avoid commitment programs.<\/p>\n
He explained participants spend six months taking anger management and life skills courses while also visiting trauma centers, funeral homes and morgues and hearing from families impacted by gun violence.<\/p>\n
Barton said the program\u2019s recidivism rate remains below 20%, but some children still fall into incidents like Friday night, and warns of the following:<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen that bullet leaves that chamber, it has no name on it,\u201d Barton said. \u201cUnderstand that life is precious and when you make the decision to pick up a firearm, you\u2019re not just causing wreckage upon the victim, you\u2019re causing breakage upon your life. Your mother\u2019s life, your father\u2019s life, your brother, your sister, and your community\u2019s life. So please understand life is precious and so are you.\u201d<\/p>\n
Tampa Police Chief Lee Bercaw commented on the matter in a statement:<\/p>\n
This type of reckless and criminal behavior will not be tolerated in our city,\u201d said Chief Lee Bercaw. \u201cWhat began as a large gathering quickly escalated into disorder and activity that placed others at risk. Parents need to know where their children are and who they are with. Unfortunately, the poor decisions made by these 22 individuals last night could have lasting consequences that follow them well into adulthood. The Tampa Police Department remains committed to being one of the safest major cities in the nation, and we will continue taking strong enforcement action against anyone who threatens the peace and safety of our community.<\/p>\n
-Chief Lee Bercaw, Tampa Police Department<\/p>\n
Authorities named programs that could help keep the youth engaged, such as \u2018Pal\u2019s Midnight Basketball\u2019 and \u2018Stay and Play\u2019 which provide late-evening hangouts.<\/p>\n
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