POMONA : Youth, 12, Stabbed by Rival Tagger at School

Repercussions from a weekend fight between graffiti taggers boiled over to John C. Fremont Junior High School this week when a 14-year-old youth stabbed a rival tagger four times with a paring knife he had brought on campus.

The 12-year-old victim was wounded in the chest, neck, back and arm around lunchtime Monday on the school’s basketball court, police said. He was airlifted by a Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department helicopter to Los Angeles Childrens’ Hospital, where he was in serious condition Tuesday.

Pomona Police Lt. Greg Hamill said the 14-year-old suspect is being held at Los Padrinos Juvenile Hall for investigation of attempted murder.

Fremont officials had no comment on the incident, but Cassandra George, assistant superintendent for secondary education at the Pomona Unified School District, said the incident disturbed her because the district puts an emphasis on counseling troubled youths at Fremont.

The stabbing was the second violent incident to strike Pomona’s schools in five days. A racially charged riot Friday involving about 100 students at Pomona High resulted in the arrest of 10 students.