Two 21-year-old male Marquette students are among seven who were ticketed for obstructing an officer and disorderly conduct after Milwaukee Police officers broke up a fight outside the Alumni Memorial Union, late Saturday.

A second fight inside the AMU, where a dance was being held, prompted MPD to shut down the event early, according to Assistant Director of Public Safety Russ Shaw. The National Pan-Hellenic Council, which is a governing body behind five of the fraternities and sororities on campus, sponsored the dance.

One University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee student and four UW-Parkside students also received citations, according to Anne Schwartz, public relations manager for MPD. Schwartz was not able to specify which citations the Marquette students received.

The first fight erupted while students were waiting in line to enter the dance at 10:51 p.m. Several DPS officers and two MPD officers already stationed at the event responded, and MPD called for backup officers. The seven people involved in the fight were taken into custody, cited and released. The crowd was dispersed, and no others were allowed in. Shaw said no injuries were reported.

Just over an hour later, at 12:05 p.m., another fight broke out — this time inside the dance. MPD responded by escorting several people out of the building and shutting down the event. The event was scheduled to end at 1 a.m., but the approximately 200 dance attendants were all forced to leave early.

The council's step show will take place at the Riverside Theater March 12, after rescheduling unrelated to Saturday's incidents.

This article appeared in The Marquette Tribune on Mar. 1 2005.