LITTLE ELM, Texas — Four students were arrested, Friday, after a planned student demonstration allegedly caused a "disruption" at Little Elm High School, Little Elm ISD said in a statement.
According to the district, "students at Little Elm HS had planned a student demonstration inside the campus that caused some students to behave in a way that caused a major disruption," and prompted a police response. The four students were accused of assaulting Little Elm police officers.
Concerned parents rushed to the campus to check on their children and to pick them up after hearing about the disturbance.
“Just confused and a little upset,” said Katrina, a mother of a student.
Videos circulating on social media showed the police deploying a spray and using tasers on students.
"As soon as I got in, there were students that were being arrested and manhandled on the floor. There were children crying and screaming. It was utter chaos. People were banging on the doors. The police were pushing the children around and it was utter shock, utter shock," said Anna De Luna, she has a daughter in the 9th grade and a son in the 10th grade at the school.
Students said complaints about an alleged sexual assault, which some felt administrators were ignoring, triggered the on-campus protest.
"This school has had a lot of issues with sexual harassment, sexual assaults. My daughter has personally been sexually assaulted at this school," said De Luna.
But according to a statement on Little Elm ISD's Facebook page, the demonstration "was a result of a social media post the day before that contained inaccurate information regarding an incident that happened a month ago." WFAA has been able to confirm yet the details of that reported incident.
“They started banding on the windows and the doors for him to come out, and it just started getting a little bit rowdy,” said Tia, a student.
Parents are calling for more clarity and answers.
A Little Elm police spokesperson said "officers are onsite to monitor for participant safety," while the district said that administrators, school resource officers and Little Elm police were at the school to "calm things down."
"School is supposed to keep the kids safe. They should not be shot with rubber bullets,” said Katrina.
"I am unaware of any injuries at this time," the Little Elm police spokesperson told WFAA, though helicopter video showed that police and emergency medical personnel at the scene.
Maria Vaca said her daughter was pepper sprayed during the incident.
"She got pepper sprayed. Pepper sprayed for something she stood stand up for anyway," said Vaca.
Vaca believes there's a culture of inaction and sexual harassment at the school.
"What was the purpose of the walkout? Sexual harassment. They were telling administrators, they were telling counselors, nobody is doing anything about it," she said.
While police aren’t yet confirming details about the use of force, parents said they’re expecting some solid answers and explanations in the coming days.
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