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Safety Law News for August 17, 2021

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— In New York, the New York Supreme Court ruled that school officials will be liable for injuries to students when the educators fail to follow their own safety rules.  The court, in justifying its refusal to dismiss a lawsuit by a student injured during a class activity held that, “(w)hile defendants’ submissions established that the physical education teacher who supervised water polo had modified the typical rules thereof to prevent contact, defendants’ papers raise issues of fact whether those rules were enforced, the water polo game as modified was safe and age-appropriate, and the supervision of the game was reasonable under the circumstances.” Zalewski v. East Rochester Board of Education

— In Wisconsin, school resource officers in Oshkosh are using sensory bags when they respond to a scene involving an autistic student.  The sensory bag contains items that may help calm down the student.

— In California, the San Jose Unified School District trustees are resuming the use of San Jose police officers to keep students safe.  When confronted with the looming crisis of no security plan after a prior vote to end the district’s school resource officer (SRO) program, the trustees are now receptive to the urgings of the superintendents and campus administrators to – on a limited basis –  bring back the police.

— In Indiana, the board for the South Bend Community Schools is implementing a new student code of conduct based on restorative justice principles.  The new rules, “focus less on punishment and more on correcting behavior through instruction and conversation.”  The teachers union is opposed to the new policy, stating that the rules are “not clear or concise enough for teachers to enforce or parents to understand.”

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Safety Law News for August 17, 2021

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— In West Virginia, the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia, reinstated the lawsuit of a transgender student, who identifies as male, who alleged harassment and bullying by an administrator after entering the boys’ restroom.  The court agreed that the claim for “negligence per se” based upon the school’s violation of its own anti-harassment policy and the claim for “negligent retention” could go forward to compensate the student for emotional and physical injuries as a result of the continued interactions with the administrator in violation of a “stay away” agreement.  C.C. v. Harrison County Board of Education.

— In North Carolina, officials in the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools are implementing new discipline policies for school resource officers on campus based on the NASRO triad.  The goal is for school resource officers to be seen in a different light through building meaningful relationships with students.  The officers will act as educators and counselors by encouraging discussions with students.  They will even participate in campus activities and take law enforcement action only when necessary.

— In Wisconsin, the school board for the Monona Grove School District voted to retain its School Resource Officer (SRO) program.  After a year of debate, the board will seek to revise its agreement with its enforcement agencies.  Even so, the retention of the program reflects the belief that the officers, “currently do have very strong relationships with our kids.”

— In Virginia, the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office is expanding the role of its school resource officers, tasking them with home visits to follow up on calls involving a mental health crisis, suicide threat or drug overdose.   The “CARE Team” is a pilot program that gives school resource officers time to, “spend an hour, hour and a half at people’s homes just talking to them.”  

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Safety Law News for August 10, 2021

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— In Arizona, the Arizona Supreme Court ruled that school officials were not liable for the death of a student at the hands of her fellow-student boyfriend during an off-campus dispute.  The issue of whether the school owed the victim a duty of care based on their knowledge of the assailant’s history of violence was resolved in favor of the school. The court ruled that the school did not owe the decedent a duty under these circumstances because, “in the school-student relationship, the duty encompasses risks such as those that occur while the student is at school or otherwise under the school’s control.”  Dinsmoor v. City of Phoenix

— In Ohio, school resource officers in the City of Defiance are being equipped with BolaWraps.  The BolaWrap is a new tool that works like a remote lasso to detain people who may be combative or resistive without escalating the incident.  It shoots an eight-foot kevlar rope with bent hooks on the ends. It wraps around someone instantly after it is deployed with a range of 25 feet.

— In Florida, the Florida Board of Education unanimously approved a new rule that will allow parents to apply for vouchers and move their kids to another school if they perceive any type of “COVID-19 harassment” against their child in connection with masking, testing and isolation due to exposure.

— In Wisconsin, the Wisconsin Department of Justice has finished handing out $100 million in grants to bolster school safety.  The grants will allow schools to upgrade school security systems, train police and educators in understanding adolescent mental health, train school resource officers, create a confidential threat reporting tip line and conduct threat assessments.

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Safety Law News for August 6, 2021

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— In Massachusetts, the Appeals Court of Massachusetts held that the statements of a student to a teacher that, “[the teacher] makes me so angry! I want to kill that bitch,” were intended to place the teacher, in fear and therefore, did not constitute protected speech.  The court ruled that it was a close case.  Even so,  state law protects teachers from threats.  Moreover, the student’s words were intended to place the teacher, in fear.  The teacher believed the student intended harm to her, and the student demeanor during a meeting with the assistant principal placed the threat in context. Commonwealth v. Leonardo

— In Ohio, officials at the Columbus City Schools are expressing confidence with the resources for protecting students after the removal of police officers. In lieu of school resource officers, 104 non-sworn school security officers are being deployed in the schools to walk the halls, engage with students, and monitor more than 6,000 cameras to determine when to call police.

— In Virginia, parents in the Arlington County schools are questioning the decision of administrators at a local high school who refused to call police in the wake of a campus fight involving a group of students.  Parents later showed up at the high school, after which police were called.  Arlington County removed its school resource officers over concerns of over-policing of students of color and amid protests of systemic racism.  Now parents who wish to press charges against student assailants are concerned that the school is violating state law that requires schools to immediately report certain criminal offenses to police.

— In North Carolina, educators and policymakers state-wide convened to develop a statewide school safety plan for all grade levels K through 12.  Led by the North Carolina Department of Public Safety, the plan includes hiring more school resource officers and mental health coaches and focusing on early prevention and active shooter training.

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Safety Law News for August 3, 2021

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— In Indiana, the United States District Court held that the strip search of a student by an administrator and nurse, prompted by a tip from two students, was unreasonable at its inception and in its scope.  In refusing to dismiss the case, the court ruled that the school officials neither investigated nor made an effort  to corroborate the tipsters’ account that the student possessed a bag of marijuana in her bra.  In 2009, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Fourth Amendment “requires the support of reasonable suspicion of danger or of resort to underwear for hiding evidence of wrongdoing,” prior to a student strip search.  Here, “the school officials went from tip to strip search lickety-split.”  R.D. v. Concord Community Schools

— In North Carolina, the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools Board of Education voted to bring back School Resource Officers in its secondary schools.  The new agreement will change the role of the officers to make the program more inclusive and student-focused.  To do so, revisions will focus training on mental health and special needs students.

— In Tennessee, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation published its annual statewide school crime study.  The study presents information on the characteristics of crime in Tennessee schools, K-12. The overall number of reported offenses decreased 59% over a three-year period.  Student arrests decreased from 4100 arrests in 2018, 4400 arrests and 2019, to a low of 1800 arrests in 2020.  Drug and narcotics violations decreased 54%. Weapons possession violations decreased 51%.  The reported offender’s race was nearly equal between White students and African American students.

— In Missouri, school officials along with other public and private stakeholder agencies in Southwest Missouri are discussing solutions to youth suicide.  The group identified six areas of concern: teen use of tobacco or vaping, bullying, marijuana use, underage drinking, mental health issues and suicidal ideations, and other drug abuse, such as prescription medications and opioids.

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Safety Law News for July 30, 2021

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— In Ohio, the United States Court of Appeals ruled that city officials did not violate federal law when their negligence allowed a police officer impersonator to assault and falsely imprison students.  The court held that claims based on the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act were not designed to address the negligence.  The court concluded that the SRO program, fraught with poor implementation, should be the subject of state-based claims. M.J. by & through S.J. v. Akron City School District Board of Education

— In Illinois, the school resource officer program has been temporarily suspended due to staffing shortages at the police department.  The press release by school officials and the police department says the officers previously deployed to the schools will be reassigned.  Educators say, “a resource officer is necessary in a school. They’re very helpful… resource officers were a good source of someone trusted [students] could go to and talk to if there was a problem.”

— In Virginia, the superintendent of the Alexandria City Public Schools has notified the school board that time is running out on providing a “contingency plan with regards to safety and security mitigations for our students and staff.”  The Alexandria City Council voted to redirect nearly $800,000 in SRO funding toward student mental health resources.  The superintendent proposes that the school district hire private security officers and retain through a new agreement police officers to work the perimeter of schools during the school day.

— In Arkansas, Conway School District officials are revising their school resource officer program.  Instead of using a dedicated school resource officer at each campus, the new model will use multiple officers to cover all the schools. The officers will visit the schools as part of their regular, daily patrols.