Downey : Lunch Program Protest Results in Suspensions
- Share via
Between 60 and 80 students were suspended and more than 100 were in detention at Warren High School all week for their role in last Friday’s protest against the school’s closed lunch program.
Ed Harcharik, principal of Warren High in Downey, said that about 300 students staged a sit-in at 12:35 p.m. Friday, after lunch, protesting a school board policy forbidding students to leave campus during the lunch period. A food fight broke out, and Harcharik said he tried to talk to the students and persuade them to return to class. A few left, he said, but a group of about 100 students ran past administrative offices, breaking about six windows and turning over trash cans.
One student was arrested for threatening a teacher and three others were arrested for destroying property, Harcharik said. He said the four ninth- and 10th-graders later were released to their parents.
About 15 parents called the school Monday to express support for the closed lunch policy, Harcharik said. Parents and residents also have started a petition drive to keep the lunch period closed for safety reasons.
Sign up for Essential California
The most important California stories and recommendations in your inbox every morning.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
More From the Los Angeles Times
Podcasts
John Orr was a renowned fire investigator who was also a prolific arsonist, and whose thinly veiled novel helped to convict him. In this episode we hear from the fire captain who first suspected him—and from Orr himself.
Tom Girardi was a legal legend—until he was found guilty of stealing millions from his own clients. Host Madison McGhee and pop culture commentator Kiki Monique unpack how his downfall became a Real Housewives scandal, and what Erika Jayne may or may not have known. Plus, L.A. Times reporter Harriet Ryan joins to share how she helped bring Girardi’s crimes to light.
Sammy Roth visits America’s second-largest nuclear plant, Arizona’s Palo Verde Generating Station, and sits down with three experts to explore the pros and cons of atomic energy.
