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A video surfaced online Tuesday showing an altercation between two Clark County Public Schools (CCPS) students has resulted in a criminal investigation by district and local law enforcement and

The 35-second video shows an older female student facing off with a younger male student. The female student forced the male student back down into the seat, appearing to have both her hands on his throat, before repeatedly striking him in the head. A student jumped in to separate the two shortly after that.

Superintendent Dustin Howard confirmed during an interview with the Sun that the incident occurred Tuesday afternoon during dismissal time and that the students in the video were high schoolers and middle schoolers, respectively, but that due to district policy, neither student’s names could be released.

“We were aware of the incident immediately, and we were aware of the video shortly after,” Howard said.

The superintendent said that the district acted swiftly to speak with both students and to each of their respective parents, and that the district’s internal investigation was near completion Wednesday morning.

“We are not just looking at a criminal investigation but also the school’s code of conduct and making sure that we are thorough and that we hold kids accountable, and make sure moving forward that we set the tone that safety comes first and there are certain things you cannot do,” Howard said.

The investigation by CCPS police and local law enforcement remains ongoing.

Howard said he wants to use the incident as a reminder of the consequences of sharing online videos of minors without parental consent.

“I do want to encourage folks that these are still minors, so when things are going on social media and being shared, we are not helping minors,” he said. “We have to remind ourselves that social media is forever and we are spreading around things…We are not making it easier on the victim by spreading things out there they are not going to want to remember or talk about. There is trauma involved, and we have to be responsible as adults to make sure we are not unintentionally adding to said drama.”

So, what are the appropriate steps to take when such a situation arises?

“The best thing to do is to contact the school system and let us know,” Howard advised.

Concerned parents can contact each school or contact Howard at the district’s central office at (859) 744-4545.