More than 60 students, administrators, faculty and Ames police officials met to discuss a recent dispute Monday night, filling room 18 of Carver Hall. The incident occurred April 6 on Welch Avenue and involved students from Ames High School and Ballard High School in Huxley.

Interim Dean of Students Pete Englin said a fight broke out between a black Ames student and a white Ballard student over a white woman. He said there have also been unconfirmed reports of a retaliation by Ballard students planned for Veishea weekend.

“We hear that folks would take care of this on their own if they came back,” Englin said.

The incident stretches back to January when the woman asked an Ames student to tell her boyfriend, a Ballard student, that she wanted to break up with him, said Sgt. Mike Johns of the Ames Police Department.

During the next four months, both students exchanged heated phone calls and threats. These escalated at the April 6 incident, he said, when several Ames students arrived at a Welch Avenue apartment. They told the resident of the apartment they were being followed by Ballard students, Johns said.

“The girl went across the hall to tell the residents that white people had come to kill [the Ames student] because he was black,” he said, which had been reported by the woman.

The clash occurred outside the apartment between five or six people, Englin said. One Ballard student was injured, but Englin said the student refused help when a Department of Public Safety officer arrived on the scene.

“Those who stayed afterwards did not give comments,” he said.

Johns said even though no official charges have been filed, the department has decided to investigate the incident.

“Because of phone calls, we did investigate to make sure of no criminal activity,” he said.

Members of the black community in Ames expressed concern of retaliation and said they had heard rumors of ISU students being involved in the fight. Some students felt the Ames Police Department and DPS should put more officers on duty this weekend in case of a counterattack.

“I think it’s important for us not to underestimate these students,” said Tynesia Hill, junior in anthropology. “We should be looking for younger students during Veishea weekend. It only takes one to take a gun – it doesn’t take a group of them.”

Johns said he was confident they would not have any problems this weekend.