30 Students Arrested in Racial Fights : Violence: Leuzinger High student is shot as ongoing tensions between blacks and Latinos erupt.

One teen-ager was shot and about 30 students were arrested in two incidents of racially motivated fighting near Leuzinger High School in Lawndale late Friday morning, authorities said.

The fighting between black and Latino youths erupted shortly before noon after school officials met with a contingent of parents to discuss ongoing problems between the two groups. It was unclear whether the meeting prompted the fighting, a Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department spokesman said.

A 15-year-old Latino from Leuzinger was shot in the leg after a verbal confrontation between several black and Latino students in nearby El Camino Village, an unincorporated area of Los Angeles County. The student was taken to a nearby hospital.

Jachin L. Davis, 18, a Leuzinger student, and a 17-year-old Gardena High School student were arrested in the shooting, said sheriff’s Lt. Greg Morgon. Both were being held at the Lennox sheriff’s station.

Deputies also arrested a 16-year-old Latino student suspected of carrying a concealed pistol, Morgon said.

Police officers were attacked when they tried to disperse youths fighting in the streets near the campus, Police Lt. Don Pedersen said. Hawthorne police arrested about 30 juveniles for failure to disperse and assault on police officers, Pedersen said. Several officers suffered minor cuts and scrapes.

Problems at the school arose after officials, sensing tensions were at a breaking point, decided to lock down the campus about 11 a.m. and start releasing students in groups of 100. Eight deputies were called in to keep order.

But a student reportedly opened a gate and several hundred students left, Morgan said. Shortly thereafter, fistfights erupted in the surrounding neighborhoods and about 50 sheriff’s deputies were called in, Morgon said.

Most of the juveniles arrested will be released to their parents, authorities said.