3 ARRESTED IN BEATING ON CAMPUS\Palmdale student sent to hospital; girl attacked, stripped in\bathroom.

Byline: Bhavna Mistry Daily News Staff Writer

A 16-year-old boy was sent to a hospital, and three students were arrested Friday following the second major disturbance within a week at Palmdale High School.

The injured sophomore, whose name was not released, was being treated for possible fractured ribs at the Kaiser Permanente clinic in Lancaster, officials said.

According to Principal Darrell Havens, three students attacked the boy and another student at 12:20 p.m., just as lunch was ending Friday afternoon.

"They were upset about an incident that happened the day before where a student was suspended for having a look-alike plastic play gun," Havens said. "They think that (the injured student) turned him in. They went up to question him and ended up jumping him."

According to sheriff's Lt. Ed Dvorack, two other students were involved with the fight but are not in custody.

A 17-year-old and two 15-year-old boys, all Palmdale High students, were arrested on suspicion of assault with force likely to produce great bodily injury.

The injured student was transported by ambulance to the Desert Palms Community Hospital, where his parents met him and drove him to the Kaiser clinic for additional tests.

In a separate incident Friday, three girls beat another girl in a campus bathroom, stripped her of her clothing, dragged her outside and left her next to a trash can, then attempted to set the bathroom on fire, students and officials said.

Dvorack said the girl suffered minor injuries and was treated at the school.

"There were a couple of other fights on campus as well," Dvorack said. "But they were all minor incidents."

The principal was at district headquarters in Lancaster on Friday attending expulsion hearings when he was called back to school after rumors spread that the lunch-time attack on the boy may inspire a retaliation riot after school.

In a similar incident Wednesday, a dozen sheriff's deputies were called to the school and a student was arrested for inciting a riot after overturning a security guard's golf cart.

After Friday's assault, deputies from other high schools, gang detail deputies and Palmdale patrol deputies patrolled the campus after school and stood watch to deter further violence.

Freshman Terri Holmes, 14, said she found the level of campus violence frightening.

"It's very scary," Holmes said. "You have to watch your back all the time."