SIMI VALLEY, Calif. (KABC) — Four teenagers were arrested after a fight captured on video outside a Simi Valley movie theater, police said.
Officers responded around 11 p.m. Friday to a report of an assault in a parking lot at 2751 Tapo Canyon Road, according to a news release. Four underage boys were arrested for battery, authorities said.
A group of teenagers approached another group at the Regal Plaza and at some point a fight broke out, according to the Simi Valley Police Department. The two groups have had prior altercations, police said.
In video of the incident, racial slurs can be heard.
In a press release issued Sunday, police said there were two victims who were injured. Their injuries were described as consisting of a possible concussion, chipped tooth, minor cuts and abrasions.
Michael Robinson said he was with his friends when the other group approached him. When the fight broke out, Robinson said he tried to run away.
“They catch me again and they end up shoving my head in a trash can,” he told Eyewitness News. “And this whole time they were jumping me I haven’t really been getting hit anywhere else except the back of my head and my back.”
Robinson said he suffered a concussion and a back injury.
Jamal Tooson, an attorney representing Robinson, said the boys who chased down his client yelled racial slurs at him. Tooson wants police to look into whether this should be investigated as a hate crime.
“We want transparency. We want answers, and we want to be assured that there’s going to be a thorough investigation, as well as consequences for these young men,” Tooson said.
Simi Valley police said the agency is looking into whether the fight constitutes a hate crime.
“As many people saw, there was several racial slurs used during that fight. That is being investigated and will continue to be investigated,” Simi Valley police Sgt. Rick Morton said. “As a matter of fact, when we send the charges up to the district attorney’s office they’ll review that to see if a hate crime will be added to the charges.”
One of the teens who was at the scene of the incident is related to a member of Simi Valley Police Department, the agency confirmed.
“That employee was not at the scene nor will he be involved in the investigation,” the department’s statement said. “That relationship has no bearing on this investigation. A thorough and unbiased investigation will be conducted.”
The investigation is ongoing and will be presented to the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office.
Authorities said that additional charges may be added, and it’s possible other suspects may be identified in this case.
