300 Juveniles Involved in Multiple Fights Near AMC Theater in Emeryville
Emeryville, Calif. – Chaos erupted on Sunday evening as approximately 300 juveniles broke into groups and engaged in multiple fights near the AMC Theater on Bay and Shellmound Streets, according to Emeryville police.
Eyewitness Kathryn Borrud from Fresno found herself caught in the middle of the commotion as she tried to leave the area. “There were just these throngs of kids – I want to say 300, 400 kids,” Borrud said. “Things were fine. It was just a little strange, and then all of a sudden, they started running towards us. We thought there was like gunfire or a knife or something happened.”
In the midst of what felt like a stampede of teenagers, Borrud and her son were knocked over. “Someone pushed past me, and I hit the ground. He has a couple of skinned knees,” she said.
Emeryville police reported that amidst the fights, a single gunshot was fired but fortunately did not hit anyone. Approximately an hour later, a juvenile was stabbed near Elm Street and was taken to Highland Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Captain Oliver Collins, a spokesman for the Emeryville Police Department, revealed that out of the hundreds of teens involved, only one juvenile was arrested.
Witness Brenda Valladares expressed her concern about the incident, questioning why so many unsupervised kids were present. “My thing is just what were 400 kids doing? They said it was over 400 kids. What were they doing here unsupervised without their parents? And it’s scary because she sometimes wants to go to the movies, and I’m like, ‘I don’t think you’re not at that age to go by yourself.'”
The incident at the Bay Street Mall spilled over into a nearby Target, where witnesses observed teenagers pulling items off shelves, creating a mess, and engaging in shoplifting in front of their families. “People were getting mad and everybody was stealing everything. Everything was on the floor,” said witness Annalise Garcia.
While police did not confirm the connection to the Target incident, they did mention a “link up” posted on social media that initially called for a large gathering of teens at the Bay Street Mall.
The incident occurred on National Cinema Day, where AMC Theaters were selling tickets for just $4. Shortly after the incident, AMC announced the temporary closure of the Emeryville location.
Emeryville residents and visitors are urged to stay updated on this developing story.
What role did social media play in the escalation of the fights among the large group of juveniles near the AMC Theater in Emeryville?
Ire or something, so we all started running too.”
Police responded to the scene around 8 p.m. after receiving calls about fights breaking out among the large group of juveniles. Officers from surrounding jurisdictions were also called in to assist with crowd control.
According to Emeryville Police Department spokesperson, Sgt. Jamie Haddad, the fights were not gang-related and appeared to be a result of a disturbance at a nearby event. Haddad believes social media may have played a role in amplifying the situation. “It’s likely that word spread quickly through social networking, and that drew in more people, which led to the fights,” Haddad explained.
Police used pepper spray and non-lethal projectiles to disperse the crowd and regain control of the situation. Several juvenile suspects were arrested for various charges, including assault and disorderly conduct. No serious injuries were reported, but a few individuals were treated at the scene for minor injuries.
The AMC Theater, along with nearby businesses, temporarily closed their doors during the incident to ensure the safety of their patrons. Emeryville police remained in the area after the fights were dispersed to prevent any further incidents.
Emeryville Mayor Dianne Martinez expressed her concern over the incident, stating that it was unusual for such a large gathering of juveniles to result in violence. “We will be reviewing the incident and working with local authorities to ensure that something like this doesn’t happen again,” Martinez said.
The Emeryville Police Department is actively investigating the incident and reviewing surveillance footage to identify additional suspects involved in the fights. They are urging anyone with information to come forward.
This is not the first time incidents of this nature have occurred near the AMC Theater in Emeryville. In 2017, a similar incident involving a large group of juveniles resulted in arrests and injuries. Measures were taken to enhance security in the area following that incident, but it seems that additional steps may be necessary to prevent future occurrences.
:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/4A6DISX2TJGY3G4DGZTPUVFUA4.png "Shooting Incident Mars Worcester Caribbean Festival; Two Injured, Investigation Underway")
This is a shocking incident, and it’s unfortunate that things escalated to this level. Hoping for justice to prevail and for everyone involved to learn from this.