A Florida mother is facing charges for allegedly intervening in a fight between her teenage daughter and other high school students at the bus stop. Video shows her putting a girl in a headlock before pulling her free and smashing her over the head with a Stanley Cup.
Kathryn Stephanopoulos, 34, was arrested Monday and charged with aggravated child abuse following a wild brawl between her daughter and other students at Flagler-Palm Coast High School in Bunnell last week, Fox 35 reported.
Her daughter had an argument with another teenager over the summer and agreed to settle the fight as soon as they got off the bus last Wednesday, according to an affidavit obtained by the station.
“One of the juvenile’s mothers was waiting at the bus stop after her child told her about the fight,” the sheriff’s office said. “When the fight started, the mother intervened in the fight instead of trying to break it up.”
A shocking video shows Stephanopoulos standing next to the two girls as they faced each other – and then jumping into the fight as fists began to fly, officials told the news agency.
Once the mother put her daughter’s rival in a headlock and fell to the ground during a heated argument.
“Yo, not the mom!” a student is heard screaming as Stephanopoulos wrestles with the girl on the ground.
A second fight then began between the daughter and a male student who tried to end the first argument, police said.
“How did this shit even start, dude?” one student said in the clip. “How did this shit even happen?”
Later in the fight, one of the teenagers swings the Stanley Cup at Stephanopoulos’ head.
“Did she just hit them with a Stanley Cup?” one student asks incredulously, while another replies, “Yes, she did.”
“This is crazy!” says one of the students.
Shortly afterward, Stephanopoulos and her daughter are seen getting into their car and driving away. After that, according to the affidavit, the bus drove away to drop the rest of the students off at their homes.
Those involved in the fight suffered only minor injuries such as cuts, bruises and swelling, police said.
Stephanopoulos was arrested a few days later and charged with aggravated child abuse. She has since been released on $1,000 bail, according to the newspaper.
“It should be noted that Kathryn expressed her regret and embarrassment about the entire incident,” the mother’s affidavit states.
One of the teens was arrested for aggravated assault, while another faces misdemeanor charges, the outlet said, without specifying which of them is Stephanopoulos’ daughter.
