Fight between parents at national cheerleading competition in Dallas causes panic, stampede

Dallas Police on Saturday said there were multiple non-life threatening injuries after crowds of people rushed out of the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center where a national cheerleading competition was underway.

The rush happened after a fight among attendees caused multiple nearby poles to crash to the ground. The loud noises "contributed to panic inside the building" according to a statement from Dallas Police.

The National Cheerleaders Association All-Star National Championship has been taking place at the convention center since Thursday and was scheduled to run through Sunday.

Despite initial concerns of a shooting, Dallas Police clarified on X Saturday afternoon that no shots were fired.

"We can confirm that there was no active shooter at the Kay Bailey Hutchinson Convention Center," the department posted.

Event staff told KERA News that two parents got into a small altercation and security responded to break it up.

Marcus Tucker is a parent who was getting ready to watch his daughter compete when people started evacuating.

"A huge crowd just flowed around the corner and sort of screamed 'run, run, run, run, run!' And we started running," Tucker said.

Tucker's family was briefly split up until they were reunited at Dallas Police headquarters.

"It's sad that a fight canceled the entire competition," Tucker told KERA News. "There's a lot of kids that didn't even get to compete."

Charity Lockner, another attendee who evacuated, said her family was also separated until they reunited outside the convention center.

"You want to think about those the kids, the athletes first and foremost because this was about them," Lockner said. "Now it turned into this horrific incident to where, you know, like how many of them are going to be traumatized?"

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