Cops: Woman egged on fight, hit child

A Shirley woman was arrested Monday after she encouraged two 12-year-old girls to fight each other and later kicked, kneed and spit at a third child, police said.

Daphne Melin, 32, of 30 Holly Lane, was charged with three counts of endangering the welfare of a child and one count of third-degree attempted assault, Suffolk police said. All are misdemeanor charges.

Melin was outside the William Floyd Elementary School on Lexington Road in Shirley about 3 p.m. Sunday, when the two girls were fighting, police said.

During the fight, Melin made no attempt to stop the girls, and shouted encouragement to one of the fighters, police said.

After that fight ended, police said, Melin spit at and struck another child who was in the crowd.

Police declined to say whether Melin was related to any of the children involved in the incident.

After an investigation by Seventh Precinct officers, Melin was arrested and later freed on bail, pending her appearance in at First District Court in Central Islip on Dec. 1, police said.