ALBANY, Ga. (WALB) — Eight Albany Middle School student-athletes have been arrested and charged after allegedly attacking a fellow teammate in the school locker room earlier this week, school district officials and law enforcement confirmed.

According to Dougherty County School System Police Chief Troy Conley, the incident occurred Tuesday, Sept. 29, as members of the football team prepared for practice. Instead of readying for the field, Conley said a group of players targeted a single teammate, striking him repeatedly.

The victim suffered multiple bruises and abrasions to his face and body.

Police were notified the following day after someone inside the locker room recorded video that surfaced, prompting an immediate investigation with school administrators and the campus School Resource Officer (SRO).

All eight suspects are juveniles and each faces one count of aggravated assault and one count of battery. They were taken into custody and transported to a Regional Youth Detention Center (RYDC), where a judge subsequently denied them bond.

When asked about the racial dynamics of the incident, Conley confirmed that the eight suspects are Black and the victim is white, but noted investigators have uncovered no evidence pointing to a hate crime. The case has been forwarded to the Dougherty County District Attorney’s Office for review and further adjudication.

Dougherty County School System Superintendent Kenneth Dyer said the district took swift disciplinary action upon learning of the assault, immediately barring all eight students from participating in the middle school championship game held that week.

“Anyone who displays that type of behavior is not representing the values of the Dougherty County School System, so they won’t represent us on the athletic field or anywhere else,” Dyer said. “The decision for them not to play in the game was an easy decision to make.”

School administrators are preparing a disciplinary tribunal package to pursue additional administrative actions under district code-of-conduct guidelines.

Both Dyer and Conley urged parents to reinforce conflict-resolution and peer-respect lessons at home, emphasizing that students must speak up and report bullying or threats to school staff—including teachers, administrators, custodians, or bus drivers—before situations escalate.

“We take the safety and security of our students, staff, and guests as our first priority,” Dyer said. “We can’t guarantee that everyone is going to behave like we expect them to behave, but we can guarantee that when they don’t, we’re going to address those situations swiftly, decisively, and to the fullest extent possible.”

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