School Safety Law Blog – Page 100 – News and Information for School Safety

Safety Law News for August 21, 2015

by Bernie James • August 21, 2015

In Massachusetts, Worcester city Mayor Joe Petty announced that the Superintendent, City Manager, and Police Chief have decided to implement the school resource officer model in the Worcester Public Schools.

In Georgia, the officials in the Gainesville school district have upgraded the campus surveillance system to allow all school resource officers and principals to access the camera feed remotely – on their phones and tablets.

In Nevada, law enforcement and school officials in Elko County announced details of the success of the new school resource officer program in its first six months of operation.

In New York, the school resource officers in the New York City public schools have received training and will be equipped with Narcan. Narcan is a life-saving drug that revives those who have overdosed on opioids and opiates.

by Bernie James • August 17, 2015

In Ohio, officials in the Reynoldsburg City Schools report that stolen cell phones are one of the biggest crime problems students experience on campus.

In Alabama, Hartselle City Schools Resource Officers are educating parents on the dangers of sexting and cyberbullying.

In Georgia, school resource officers in Clayton County will again begin the school year equipped with body cameras.

In Lawrence County, Alabama, the school board unanimously voted to hire back its school resource officers despite budget limits. The single biggest reason for the decision was the fact that the campuses are 10 or 15 minutes from sheriff’s department assistance.

In Tennessee, Wilson County school officials are contracting with Texas-based Anderson Software to implement a new anonymous tip program that will allow students to download a mobile app and send tips on their phones to designated educators.

by Bernie James • August 10, 2015

In Michigan, the C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital National Poll on Children’s Health reports that two issues have quickly climbed higher on the list of major health concerns for children: sexting and internet safety.

In Maryland, officials from the State Board of Education and Washington County continue to debate the new state policy on out-of-school-suspensions. After making some changes, school administrators now have more discretion to suspend students for distributing drugs, physical assaults, and sexual harassment.

In Georgia, Richmond County school buses will carry a patrol officer in an attempt to crack down on motorists who fail to yield for stoplights. Patrol cars will follow behind the bus to react when someone fails to yield during one of its assigned stops.

In Tennessee, the Court of Criminal Appeals has reversed the conviction of a parent who told school officials, “I’m going to come back in here with an AK–47 … I’m going to kill everybody in here and then kill myself.” The court ruled that under the circumstances no rational trier of fact could conclude that the parent made his statements knowing that they would cause school personnel to fear imminent serious bodily injury. [State v. Watts]

by Bernie James • August 4, 2015

In North Carolina, a new state law requires every school district to submit digital blueprints to the North Carolina Department of Public Safety. The North Carolina Center for Safer Schools says that a third of the public school districts have yet to comply with the requirement.

In New Jersey, a judge ruled that school districts do not have to release the information pertaining to school security drills. Educators have a “security” exemption to the requirements of the New Jersey Open Public Records Act.

In Minnesota, the Court of Appeals has reversed the expulsion of a student disciplined after a knife was found in her purse during a search of her locker. The court ruled that the expulsion violated the Pupil Fair Dismissal Act. [In re A.D.]

In Iowa, the Court of Appeals upheld the conviction of a student for possession of a firearm and carrying weapons on school grounds. The court ruled that the administrator’s search of the school-issued athletic equipment bag was reasonable and did not violate the Fourth Amendment. [State v. Lindsey].

by Bernie James • July 28, 2015

In Alabama, Decatur County school resource officers will soon be equipped with tasers, in addition to their firearms. The school board voted 4 to 2 in favor of the new equipment.

The Superior Court of the Virgin Islands has applied the U.S. rule of law to a student search case. The court ruled that a school official’s search of student backpacks for weapons was valid on mere reasonable suspicion. The assistance of two school resource officers did not compromise the authority of the educator. [People v. T.S.]

In North Carolina, the state court of appeals has ruled that Miranda warnings were not required in the questioning of a 15 year-old student by educators. The court ruled that the presence of a school resource officer at the request of administrators does not automatically convert the questioning of a juvenile into a custodial interrogation. The court ignored the fact that the SRO did ask a few questions. [In re R.B.L.]

In Georgia, the court of appeals has ruled that a teacher is immune from liability for holding a student in a headlock for a period of time in front of other students in a seventh-grade language arts class. The court found that although the incident might demonstrate the teacher’s “frustration, irritation, and possibly even anger,” evidence of malice or intent to deliberately hurt is required to overcome the presumption of immunity in Georgia. [Tuggle v. Rose]

by Bernie James • July 23, 2015

In North Carolina, the Wake County school board gave final approval Tuesday to a new “technology responsible use” policy that will require parental consent before students can use technology in school. The policy covers use of social media accounts, including Facebook and Twitter.

In Georgia, the Coweta County Board of Education approved a cyberbullying policy. The policy reaches all electronic communication – whether or not it originates on school property or with school equipment – if the act is directed at students or school personnel, is malicious and intended to harm their safety or substantially disrupt the orderly operation of school, and creates a reasonable fear of harm to the students’ or school personnel’s person or property.

In California, the Santa Maria Joint Union High School District is installing cameras and tracking devices to its buses. The monitoring system, called “vMax Trac,” will allow the school district to know the location of its buses, see what’s happening on the buses, and know the names of all the students on board.

In Wisconsin, the Madison School District is struggling with its new restorative justice discipline policy. Since its Behavior Education Plan went into effect for the 2014-2015 school year, out-of-school suspensions across the school district dropped 32 percent, but the racial disproportionality of suspensions actually increased. And students, teachers, and parents continue to criticize the climate on campus brought by the new policy.