BUCYRUS — Three teens have been charged with felonious assault stemming from a fight March 2 that sent a Galion High School student to the hospital with serious injuries.
The three girls charged, ages 15, 16 and 16, will not be tried as adults, meaning the consequences will be treated as delinquencies.
“They have been charged with felonious assault, they just won’t be tried as adults,” Crawford County Prosecutor Matt Crall said.
Felonious Assault charges require serious physical harm. Despite the allegation of serious physical harm, these charges are not eligible under Ohio law to be bound over to Common Pleas Court for adult charges, Crall said.
Crall said there is no evidence indicating the incident stemmed from a “fight club,” despite allegations on social media.
“We don’t go on rumors. We go on what we can prove,” Crall said.
He did say, however, that videos released on social media of the backyard fight helped the Galion Police Department in their investigation and determination of felonious assault charges.
“It definitely helped. But I must say … We never want to receive evidence in that way,” Crall said. “The kids involved did so (record the videos) without knowing they would hand them over to the police.
“What I find more disturbing than the fight is the reaction and egging on shown in the video.”
Crall said police have yet to recover evidence that the backyard fight was a “paid event,” despite comments seen on social media.
“They (Galion Police Department) have looked into that but it’s not been part of anything found,” he said.
According to Crall, Galion Police continue to investigate the incident.
