Pullman police are frustrated. With good cause. They respond to a 911 call about a fight in progress. They get there. Find two guys bleeding. See that an assault has occurred. An arrest should happen. But the guys close ranks. Neither wants to be labeled a victim. Neither wants to press charges.

And so in Pullman – home to mostly law-abiding college students and young people – the fights rage on among a small percentage of youths who get drunk, get angry, get frustrated and slap, kick, punch and head butt each other.

Police and city leaders feel now is the time to strike back. As Spokesman-Review reporter Thomas Clouse recently reported, the city “has re-energized a months-long effort to pass an ordinance that would make fighting a civil infraction that would cost brawlers $250 for the first offense and $500 for the next.”

Fistfights are not victimless crimes. They should not be viewed as private business between groups of young men or between groups of young women. They are not rites of passage. They can result in serious physical harm. In late October, for instance, a 20-year-old WSU fraternity member’s jaw was broken during a fight, broken so seriously he was sent to Seattle for treatment.

Fights can also result in psychic harm. The stereotype of the macho young male earning his manhood scars during fistfights belies the shame, humiliation and fear some fight victims experience for years after a brawl.

The ordinance might not stop that many fights, but it will send a message of accountability and zero tolerance. The code of silence between fraternity members and other young people Pullman police confront at fight scenes is reminiscent of the code of silence that once marked domestic violence. Husbands and wives fought and beat. Police arrived. And then both refused to press charges. The police had no choice but to walk away.

Laws have been changed to empower police officers to arrest the primary aggressor at a domestic violence scene if the officer has probable cause. The change in the law educated people that domestic violence is not a private matter. Neither is fighting and brawling among young people.

It’s time, Pullman, to get tough on these young people who pull these violent punches. Pass the ordinance.