The Convocation on Sunday night in Elkins that was supposed to be “focused on praise, worship and spiritual encouragement” ended in a fistfight between two students with DPS officers arriving within seconds.
According to the DPS report, Public Safety officers responded at 8:20 p.m. to a report of a fight among four students, two of whom ended up in the fistfight.
Sophomore Mariam Fam said she sat near the male students who were involved during the Genesis Gospel Choir’s fall concert.
“This one guy was making noise the whole time, clapping obnoxiously and laughing at certain people singing, and the people in front of him were getting annoyed,” Fam said.
Witnesses said the student in front of him asked the man to be quiet.
“The last song the choir was singing people were rushing out to get scanned out as quickly as possible, and everyone was standing up to clap,” Fam said.
It was then that the male student who was told to be quiet went to the row in front of him and confronted the man.
The details of the physical fight are unclear. Witnesses said the incident lasted less than a minute.
As the Convo staff broke up the fracas, students were locked inside Elkins before DPS could arrive. A DPS officer entered the auditorium, and students left without scanning out ID’s.
The Convocation office was unable to be reached by press time.
Follow Mariella Rudi on Twitter.
