KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A fight on New Year's Eve at a Northland skating rink has prompted the owners to implement new rules impacting minors.
Winwood Skate Center now requires people under 18 to be accompanied by a chaperone. The chaperone must be an adult or legal guardian 21 and older.
“Unfortunately, we didn’t want to put a policy like this in place," Luke Powell said. "We fought it, especially me personally — I fought it."
Powell owns the skate center and explained the rule was recommended by police.
Powell said the fight on New Year's Eve was caused after a girl slapped a boy. That boy then reportedly hit a pinball machine, shattering its glass.
Some people thought the sound was gunfire, including Bobbi Wilson.
“I hear my daughter start screaming and said ‘Oh my God mom, he’s got a gun.' Run!" Wilson said.
Wilson said she was with her children when the fight broke out and one of many people who ran out of the skate center.
“We get out there and I see kids and adults on roller skates skating for safety to get to their cars," Wilson said.
A spokesperson from the Clay County Sheriff's Office told KSHB 41 there was no evidence of shots fired.
According to an incident report from the Clay County Sheriff's Office, law enforcement witnessed a large crowd of juveniles running from a nearby Target and one of the teens were seen hitting another person.
The report said law enforcement noticed a handgun on the ground while making an arrest.
Powell said rumors on social media have confused the commotion outside the nearby Target with what happened inside his skate center.
“There was never a gun in this building. We follow the guidelines of KCPD, they took care of the problem in Target and came up here, reviewed the video that was supplied by us and did tell us that kid never entered this building at all," Powell said.
Powell added one change that won't happen is there won't be metal detectors. He said his customers are not criminals and won't be treated like they are.
“We want to make sure that this place is accessible to everyone. We want to make sure that we create a fun, cool, safe environment," he said.
—
