CONCORD TOWNSHIP, Ohio (WJW) – Leading up to sunset at St. Gabriel Catholic Church Summer Fest on Saturday there were no concerns for safety or violence. But as the night fell, several fights broke out, leading to the arrest of four juveniles, one of which was carrying a gun illegally.

St. Gabriel church leadership opted to close the festival early due to the incident.

“We had a lot of young juveniles that just were being kids, having some fights, got a little out of control,” Festival co-chair Rory Laugh said. “Crowds got tighter, denser, fights continued. Sheriffs jumped in swiftly and executed beautifully to eliminate those.”

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The instances of violence are seemingly becoming a trend, after violence broke out at the St. Clare Festival in Lyndhurst on June 1. Ten teenagers were arrested on charges ranging from carrying a concealed weapon to resisting arrest to curfew violations.

Father Fred Pausche is the Pastor of St. Gabriel Church, who said each year the festival is a safe, family friendly environment. Which is why he is very disheartened by the violence, but proud of how his community responded.

“Went from, to be honest with you, being very angry, to being very sad, to being very, very proud of our people, of our team or of our leaders,” Pausche said.

There were no injuries to anyone at the festival outside of the juveniles involved in the fights, and a deputy who sustained minor injuries while assisting to the incident.

“They were not members of the parish,” Lough said. “They were from an outside area community. We don’t know the area, but they were not local, our parishioners. To have something like this happen and taint it is very disappointing. However, instead of canceling our festival today, we rose above it, united and stronger than ever.”

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To help ensure the safety of guests for the final day of the festival, the Lake County Sheriff’s Department says it has doubled the number of deputies at the festival.

“There’s so many good people in the community and in this parish that deserve to have this good time, and to come out here and enjoy themselves,” Sergeant John Kelley said.

Kelley said there is a zero-tolerance policy for violence at festivals and as we move forward this summer the LCSO plans to increase its presence to deter more acts of violence. He advises those planning on starting trouble to think otherwise.

“If you commit a criminal act then you will be held accountable here in Lake County,” Kelley said.

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