Students at a Madison high school were dismissed early Friday, because of safety concerns stemming from a fight involving a large group of students the previous day, and fears that some students may have brought weapons to James Madison Memorial High School . "We don't have any indication to believe that this is gang related" said Luis Yudice, the Madison School District's Coordinator of Safety and Security. 'This whole incident started between two students. One student made a racial slur towards the other student. On student was Latino and the other was African American." No guns were found today, but one student was arrested for carrying a knife like weapon.
A black student arrested for Thursday's fight has been charged with a hate crime for targeting a Latina girl because of her race, according to court documents. The girl temporarily lost consciousness in the beating. Six others have been charged with disorderly conduct. Tonight's football game will go forward as scheduled, but with stepped up security and lighting.