Teens fight near State Fair midway, gates close early Friday night
A fracas late Friday during opening night of the California State Fair led to the ejections of at least two people and forced staff to close the fairgrounds’ gates an hour early.
The brawl involving at least two teens broke out just after 9 p.m. near the fair’s midway, said Margaret Mohr, California State Fair deputy general manager, on Saturday.
Mohr called the incident a “dust-up,” and said the two were sent off for violating the fair’s conduct policy.
No arrests were made and no injuries were reported, but at 9 p.m., fair staff closed the fairgrounds’ admission gates – an hour before the gates’ normal 10 p.m. closing time.
Mohr said the early lockup “may have been connected” to the fight, but said any connection remained unclear Saturday. Admission gates are open until 11 p.m. on weekends, Mohr said.
Mohr said gates can be closed earlier at the discretion of staff and California State Fair Police. Mohr said she anticipated no changes to security on Saturday.
About 25,000 people attended the fair on Friday. Officials expect some 40,000 fairgoers to pass Saturday through the turnstiles.
Darrell Smith: 916-321-1040, @dvaughnsmith
This story was originally published July 15, 2017 at 4:53 PM.