Safety Law News for 9/5/13 – School Safety Law Blog

The Clarksville, Arkansas school district is considering its legal options – and a possible appeal to state lawmakers — after the state’s attorney general shot down its plan to arm 20 trained high school teachers to protect students in case of a campus attack.

The Davidson County, North Carolina School Board agreed to clarify the interagency agreement policy on weapons. Under the new policy, school resource officers will immediately be contacted by principals when they have discovered any of the weapons or weapon-like items.

The Carroll, Texas Independent School District unanimously voted for armed school resource officers in every school. Funding will come from the city’s Crime Control and Prevention District, which oversees a sales tax that is set aside for public safety.

The Florida Department of Juvenile Justice is encouraging the expansion of a different kind of juvenile justice policy that imposes civil citations instead of criminal charges for some misdemeanors. Under this new policy school-based arrests have dropped by 28 percent and first-time misdemeanor arrests dropped by 29 percent statewide in the past two years from diverting juveniles charged with minor offenses away from juvenile detention. The focus instead is on treatment, mentoring, community programs and more family involvement.