Telepeer

Santa Ana High School parents demand heightened security after killing of student

May 13, 2025

Around 30 to 40 parents and several students gathered in front of Santa Ana High School to demand increased transparency and security from the school district, following the death of a 14-year-old boy who was stabbed on school grounds last week. Many accused the district of sweeping safety issues under the rug.

“Queremos seguridad (we want security),” echoed several parents on Monday morning, May 12.

The fatal stabbing occurred on May 7, following an altercation between five students in a parking lot shared with Martin R. Heninger Elementary School next door. Three teenage boys were stabbed shortly after class ended, including Armando Morales, 14, who later died at a hospital. Two brothers, ages 15 and 17, turned themselves in later that evening and were booked in juvenile hall on suspicion of murder and attempted murder.

“Today was Armando, tomorrow it could be one of us,” said Josceline Vargas, 18, a Santa Ana High School senior.

Police initially believed all five students involved were suspected gang members. It was later determined that Armando was not a gang member and was simply trying to intervene and help his two friends when he was fatally stabbed, Santa Ana Police Officer Natalie Garcia said.

Parents and students who gathered Monday criticized officials for often generalizing and blaming issues on gangs.

“Just because he talked to kids who dress a certain way doesn’t mean he’s gang-affiliated,” Maria Sanchez, a friend of the Morales family, said in Spanish.

“No kid should be made to feel unsafe,” said Nat Cruz, a 14-year-old freshman who said Armando was a friend since middle school. “He was never gang-affiliated.”

Some parents from Santa Ana High and nearby schools who gathered near Armando’s memorial said they were invited to meet with district staff to ask questions and share concerns.

Santa Ana Unified School District spokesperson Fermin Leal said a couple of dozen parents met with school officials for an unplanned meeting and spoke for about 30 to 45 minutes. Parents asked whether there was enough security and campus police assigned to manage a school of that size (2,853 students), and discussed the possibility of adding cameras and metal detectors.

Others who attended felt the offer was an attempt to keep things quiet and did not believe any real changes would be made.

“We want the principal to come and tell us out here, not behind closed doors,” Sanchez said.

“The school isn’t out here or doing anything. They want it to disappear,” said 45-year-old Arturo Solis, who was frustrated with the school district’s response after his daughter was attacked on campus last year. “If something had changed, this wouldn’t have happened.”

Several parents and students alleged that Santa Ana School Police, who are assigned to each high school in the district, were not around when the fatal stabbing occurred.

“They’re (school police) only here when they get a call from the principal,” said Santa Ana High student Brittany Ocampo.

Questions regarding the police presence and the overall response were not immediately addressed, pending an ongoing investigation.

“We responded as fast as we were able to, given the circumstances,” said Leal.

The SAUSD spokesperson said the district was working to organize a town hall within the next two weeks.

Jazmin Delgado holds a photo of her cousin Armando Morales at a memorial at Santa Ana High School in Santa Ana, CA on Monday, May 12, 2025. Morales died from stab wounds he received during a fight near the school on Wednesday, May 7th. (Photo by Paul Bersebach, Orange County Register/SCNG)