Teens fill AMC Loews lobby

CHERRY HILL A group of 400 to 500 teenagers was safely dispersed Thursday night after crowding the lobby of the movie theater across from Cherry Hill Mall, police said.

Police were called to the AMC Loews Cherry Hill 24 on Route 38 about 9 p.m. Thursday, Cherry Hill Detective Sgt. Kirk Williams said Friday. Managers had called to have the crowd cleared out, Williams said.

The kids were "just milling around the lobby area, the parking lot . . . just basically being slightly unruly," Williams said. The teens were not moviegoers.

One 14-year-old boy was arrested for disorderly conduct; otherwise, Williams said, the crowd was "reasonably peaceful" and left.

Large gatherings of juveniles have become a phenomenon around the holidays, Williams said, and the mall and theater become places for youths to hang out without watching movies or shopping.

"Apparently, the word on the street is it's somewhat of a meeting space," he said. - Inquirer staff