13-Year-Old Girl Stabbed Another Student Over A Bag Of Potato Chips

Armona, CA – A lunchtime confrontation between two middle school students has landed a 13-year-old girl in juvenile hall and a young man in the hospital. Deputies claim the girl brandished a knife and stabbed another student over a bag of potato chips. School officials are shocked over the altercation.

The disagreement, witnessed by several peers, transpired on the Parkview Middle School playground within the Armona Unified Elementary School District of California.

The 13-year-old claims she was “simply trying to poke” the other student with a nearly four-inch folding pocketknife, according to the ABC News report. The alleged intent was not one of malice but foolishness that escalated because the boy had playfully swiped a bag of potato chips and she retaliated.

The young man was stabbed in the back along the ribcage. Due to the severity of his injury, the young man required immediate medical attention and he was rushed to the Adventist Medical Center in Hanford for treatment. Thereafter he was flown to the Community Regional Medical Center.

The suspect was arrested Wednesday afternoon and booked into the Kings County Juvenile Center. She is facing charges of assault with a deadly weapon. The assaulter argues the knife was not her property, but was holding onto it for another student on campus.

Authorities are continuing to interview the many witnesses as the accounts provided by the two involved have conflicting details.

Parents of other students were not immediately notified of the incident on campus.

Teachers have since instructed students on how to properly resolve conflicts without violence.

Do you think kids are having difficulty finding healthy ways to resolve conflict? Do you think the girl in this case should be harshly penalized for her actions? Do you think the girl understood her actions could have gotten the young man killed?

[Image via Shutterstock]