Henrico Police to crack down on unsupervised teens after fights at July 4 fireworks show

Henrico plans to change the rules and add security to public events after multiple fights broke out and a gun was recovered at the county's July 4th fireworks show at Dorey Park July 3, Police Chief Eric English announced.

"Even before the fireworks began there was a fight that broke out amongst some juvenile females," English said. "The second time, right when the fireworks went off, there was a fight that broke out... and a firearm was recovered off of one of the juveniles that was involved in the fight."

English says the violent disruptions appear to be increasing and often involve middle school students.

"What we've seen over the past few weeks is a lot of juveniles attending these events unsupervised, not really there for the actual event, but just as a hangout place and it leads to disruption," he said.

English says new safety measures are being developed through a collaborative effort between police, parks and recreation and the county attorney's office, with plans expected to be finalized within the next few weeks.

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