2 teen girls arrested in beating

LOS ANGELES TIMES

NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. — Two ninth-grade girls at Newport Harbor High have been arrested in connection with the beating of a girl from a nearby intermediate school and the posting of the video of the assault on MySpace.com and YouTube.com.

Earlier reports indicated the assault victim was developmentally disabled. But police said Wednesday that the victim is a “regular” eighth-grade pupil at Ensign Intermediate School, across the street from the high school.

Evan Sailor, a spokesman for the Newport Beach Police Department, said investigators are looking for two more suspects, one who taped the beating and another who stood nearby and watched. A letter from the principal on the Newport Harbor High School Web site said the incident occurred last Thursday at a park.

“We understand the girls might know each other,” Sailor said. “But we don’t know the motivation for the attack.”