Mike Wolanin | The Republic An exterior view of Lillian Schmitt Elementary School in Columbus, Ind., Monday, Aug. 2, 2021.
A Schmitt Elementary School male student was taken into custody by two Bartholomew Consolidated School Corp. school resource officers after he was accused of punching two female students in an unprovoked incident in the school’s lunchroom on Tuesday.
Columbus police said school resource officers were sent to Schmitt during the school’s lunch hour after the male student was accused of walking up to a female student, knocking her down and then punching and kicking her while they were in the cafeteria.
The male student was also accused of assaulting another female student in the lunchroom, police said.
Teachers in the lunchroom attempted to step in, and at some point, the teachers requested students leave the lunchroom, police said.
The two resource officers, one from a middle school and one from a high school, intervened and attempted to calm the student down, police said. After spending time in this attempt, the officers were not successful, and restrained him and transported him to the Bartholomew County Youth Services Center, which is a detention center for juveniles. The male juvenile was being held there on two counts of battery, police said.
