A teenage student will appear in court for fighting a peer in the boy’s bathroom at East Ridge High School in Clermont.
A deputy sent to investigate the fight found 18-year-old Haziel Ariosto Encarnacion checking himself and cleaning up his face in the bathroom mirror at 8:05 a.m. Wednesday, Oct. 2, according to a case report from the Lake County Sheriff’s Office. He claimed to have been attacked by another student over a disagreement regarding his girlfriend.
However, the other student stated he had gone to the bathroom to check his hair when Encarnacion came in saying he wanted to fight. He tried to avoid the confrontation as Encarnacion continued to be aggressive. He warned that he did not want to fight, but if Encarnacion hit him, he would defend himself. Encarnacion proceeded to do so, and the fight ensued, the report said.
A video taken by a witness corroborated the student’s story as far as Encarnacion throwing the first punch. It started with an exchange of words between the two before Encarnacion hit him and the fight began. The witness added that he broke it up after several moments, and he and the other student decided to report it, the report said.
Another witness stated he was in the bathroom with Encarnacion when the student came in talking about having sex with his girlfriend. He also called her a “bum from New York.” The witness was talking to someone else when he heard a commotion, looked up and saw the altercation, the report said.
Encarnacion was ultimately issued a notice to appear for battery on Nov. 25. He and the student involved in the fight were given out-of-school suspensions.