The clash at Horizon Juvenile Center involved staff, residents and alleged contraband weapons.
NEW YORK CITY, NY — Eleven people were stabbed Sunday evening inside Horizon Juvenile Center in the Bronx after a fight broke out among young people and staff members moved in to stop it, police said.
The violence at the secure juvenile detention facility drew police, firefighters and worried families to Brook Avenue in Mott Haven and Melrose. Officials said both staff members and residents were hurt, but none of the injuries was considered life-threatening. The city Administration for Children’s Services said the facility had been secured after the clash.
The disturbance was reported shortly before 5 p.m. Sunday, according to fire officials. Police arrived at the Horizon Juvenile Center after reports of a chaotic fight inside the building. A facility source said the incident involved dozens of young people, and some had contraband surgical scalpels. The source said the weapons were turned on staff members who tried to intervene. Cellphone video from outside showed emergency vehicles near the center and a staff member with blood on his face climbing into an ambulance. “The situation at Horizon Juvenile Center has been resolved and the facility is now secured,” an Administration for Children’s Services spokesperson said.
Authorities did not immediately release the names, ages or job titles of the injured people. Police said staff and residents were among those hurt. News footage showed ACS officers leaving the facility with visible injuries as emergency workers treated people outside. Parents of residents gathered near the center after hearing reports of a knife fight inside. One mother said her 17-year-old son was being held there and that she speaks with him daily. Another parent said she had received word that her son was safe. Officials had not said by early Monday how the alleged scalpels got into the facility or whether they had been recovered.
Horizon Juvenile Center is one of New York City’s secure detention facilities for young people. The city says secure detention is generally used for youths who pose the highest risk or who have been accused of serious offenses. The Bronx center is listed by the city at 560 Brook Ave. A second secure detention facility, Crossroads Juvenile Center, is in Brooklyn. The facilities hold young people whose cases may be in Family Court or in the Youth Part of Supreme Court, depending on age, charge and court status. The Sunday violence renewed attention on safety inside the city’s juvenile detention system, which has faced scrutiny over staffing, oversight and contraband.
The cause of the fight remained under investigation Monday. Police had not announced arrests, charges or a full account of what started the disturbance. The identities of the people accused of using weapons also had not been released. The Administration for Children’s Services said safety and security for young people and staff in secure detention facilities was its top priority. Investigators were expected to review video, interview staff and residents and determine how many people took part. Officials also were expected to examine whether the weapons described by the facility source entered the building through a visitor, worker, resident or another route.
The incident came weeks after federal prosecutors announced a separate contraband case involving a former staff member accused of smuggling items into a Bronx juvenile detention facility in exchange for bribes. In April 2025, New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli said the city needed to strengthen oversight at Horizon and Crossroads, including work to prevent contraband from entering the centers and to improve youth access to services. Advocates have also raised concerns about conditions inside ACS detention. City officials have said the system must protect staff while also caring for young people held in custody.
Outside Horizon, the scene reflected the speed and confusion of the response. Emergency vehicles lined nearby streets while parents tried to learn whether their children were hurt. Video showed officers and medical workers moving around the facility as people looked on from the sidewalk. One parent said there did not appear to be children with very serious injuries, but official details remained limited. The ACS statement did not describe the number of staff members hurt or the number of residents hurt. Police said the injuries were not life-threatening, leaving the main questions focused on how the fight began and how weapons reached the housing area.
The center was secured by late Sunday, and the investigation continued Monday. City officials had not set a public briefing or released a detailed timeline by Monday morning.
Author note: Last updated June 22, 2026.