photo by: Kim Callahan/Journal-World

Douglas County sheriff's deputies monitor the parking lot south of the Judicial and Law Enforcement Center Monday, June 17, 2024, after a fight erupted following the first court appearance of murder defendant Cir Allen Keith Glover.

A fight erupted Monday outside the Douglas County Courthouse after the man accused of killing a 17-year-old Lawrence boy made his first court appearance.

Numerous supporters for the deceased, Lawrence resident Isaiah Neal, attended the brief hearing, at which defendant Cir Allen Keith Glover, 18, of Lawrence, appeared via video from the Douglas County Jail.

photo by: Lawrence Police Department

Cir Allen Keith Glover is pictured in this attempt to locate poster from the Lawrence Police Department.

After the hearing, about eight or 10 people could be seen arguing loudly in the hallway, while another group exited the courthouse to the parking lot east of South Park, where the fight commenced. It was unclear what prompted the altercation. One person could be seen pulling a woman roughly by the hair while beating on her as others yelled. One person insisted, “She has right to be here.” The woman eventually broke free and got into her car just as seven or eight sheriff’s deputies came out of the courthouse. One woman could be heard shouting at people to run from the scene as the deputies emerged, and another woman could be heard pleading, “Why can’t we have peace?”

According to the spokesman for the sheriff’s office, George Diepenbrock, no one was arrested.

“The parties had dispersed and left prior to deputies’ arrival,” he said.

At Glover’s first appearance, he waived the reading of the charge against him: one count of second-degree intentional murder. Judge Blake Glover — no relation — informed Glover that, depending on his criminal history, he faced 653 months in prison, or more than 54 years, if convicted of the crime. The judge left Glover’s bond set at $1 million, appointed attorney Michael Clarke to represent him and set his next court date, a scheduling conference, for 10:30 a.m. on June 25.

Glover is accused of shooting Neal to death last week. Neal died at an area hospital early Thursday morning after police officers responded to reports of gunshots at 2406 Alabama St. at about 1:15 a.m. Officers found Neal with multiple gunshot wounds and were unsuccessful in reviving him.

Glover was arrested the next day after police received a tip from the public.

As the Journal-World has reported, Glover has juvenile convictions for felony distribution of marijuana for a 2022 incident and one misdemeanor count of escape from custody for a 2023 incident. He pleaded no contest to the charges in September of 2023 and was sentenced to nine months of probation, according to court records. He was 18 at the time of sentencing.

Glover was also convicted in Douglas County for misdemeanor battery in 2020 in connection with an incident at a football game at Free State High School where he punched another teen in the nose, fracturing it, according to court records.

He has an additional conviction in Johnson County for carrying a concealed firearm in 2022, according to court records. A list of witnesses on the charging documents includes AMC Theatre personnel.