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Safety Law News for April 15, 2022

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— In Arizona,  the Court of Appeals of Arizona held that a special relationship existed between the school district and a middle-school student who was assaulted by another student on campus.  The court refused to dismiss a case because, “the special relationship between a school and its students imposes an affirmative duty on schools to protect students from unreasonable risks of harm when they are at school or under its control.”  Evidence showed that the district was aware of many disciplinary incidents at the school, knew that security guards were assigned to the school, but knew that the guards were not present on campus at the time of the assault. Hale v. Window Rock Unified School District

— In Kentucky, the passage of House Bill 63, requiring a school resource officer in every school, is placing local school districts in crisis.  The mandate is unfunded.  Schools are pondering how to pay for the officers.

— In Colorado, an amendment has been submitted to the state budget to increase the amount of an annual grant program created last year to improve school bus safety.  Under the provisions of SB 22-085, funding would increase for a parental notification app to alert when a school bus is arriving or is late to pick up students.  In addition the legislation provides for silent alarms and crash detectors on school buses to alert first responders to its exact location.

— In Maryland, the Baltimore City Public Schools has cut ties with one of its bus contractors over safety concerns.  The district said that the contractor failed to meet several standards that would protect student safety, including insuring that buses are state approved and registered, drivers certified, and that buses consistently arrive and pick up on time.

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Safety Law News for April 13, 2022

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— In Washington State, the Court of Appeals of Washington ruled that a school district has a special relationship with its students requiring their protection from foreseeable dangers.  The court explained that the duty extends to students engaged in interscholastic sports.  Therefore, the court refused to dismiss a case brought by parents of a student who died during a summer football conditioning workout.  The parents alleged that the school failed to properly implement its emergency action plan, failed to comply with district policies, and failed to ensure that coaches complied with school rules.  Harris v. Federal Way Public Schools

— In Ohio, the Governor announced the creation of the Ohio Student Safety Advisory Council within the Ohio School Safety Center (OSSC). The student-led Council will work to identify school safety concerns and develop innovative solutions to address them.

— In Florida, House Bill 235 was signed into law.  Its provisions prohibit school personnel from using handcuffs, zip-ties, straightjackets or other devices on students.  School resource officers, school safety officers, school guardians, or school security guards can use these mechanical restraints on students.

— In Nevada, teachers and staff in the Clark County School District are requesting new safety measures for schools after a violent attack on a schoolteacher.   Employees and the teachers’ union are preparing a list of reforms, including updating camera systems, installing panic buttons, and increasing the number of school monitors and school safety officers.

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Safety Law News for April 8, 2022

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— In Michigan, the United States Court of Appeals affirmed a lower court denial of qualified immunity for two school resource officers.  A student filed a lawsuit asserting a violation of his rights under the Fourth Amendment when the officers used excessive force to forcibly remove the student from the school building.  The court held that the “use of force was unreasonable in violation of the Fourth Amendment. (The student) was not suspected of any serious crime, was not posing a threat at the time he was struck and was not resisting arrest.”  The 14-year old student was reentering the school after school ended to retrieve personal property.  E.W. v. Detroit Public School District

— In Kentucky, Owensboro Police Department school resource officers in the school district’s middle and high schools carry Narcan as part of their safety protocol. Officers in the Daviess County Public Schools Police Department are also being equipped with Narcan for use if they need to resuscitate a student or a staff member having a reaction to opioids.

— In Pennsylvania, the Pennsylvania Attorney General released a Report on school safety detailing the sharp increase in reports of potential violence in schools made to the statewide tips system Safe2Say Something PA.  Staff in the Attorney General’s office analyze the tips and report safety concerns to local school districts and the 911 center.

— In Nevada, the Clark County School District removed the principal of a high school because the school was not safe.  Desert Oasis High School was experiencing serious incidents that placed students at risk of harm, including a student arrested with a gun on campus, multiple fights, and two consecutive days where the school was placed on lockdown.

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Safety Law News for April 4, 2022

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— In Iowa, the United States District Court ruled that a school that failed to have a Title IX policy in place such that campus administrators did not know who was responsible for Title IX compliance and did not understand all that a Title IX investigation entailed, could be liable in money damages for the sexual assault of a student.  The school held its Title IX training subsequent to the assault.  Under these circumstances, the court held that, “a reasonable jury could find defendant’s failure to train was a conscious choice and was deliberately indifferent to the rights of students.”  Nissen v. Cedar Falls Community School District

— In Illinois, the legislature approved House Bill 4994 (HB 4994) with the expectation that the Governor will enact its provisions.  The primary purpose of the law is to identify the school districts that fail to comply with the state school threat assessment law.  Schools must now develop a threat assessment team and a threat assessment protocol that targets school violence and prevention.  The threat assessment team must include mental health professionals as well as representatives from state, county and local law enforcement agencies.

— In Washington, officials at the Spokane Police Department are disclosing a history of police reports that show that Spokane Public Schools respond inconsistently to campus safety incidents. The police chief sent a letter to school officials on the matter.  In the wake of evidence of reticence by educators to inform police of incidents that place students at risk of harm, the FBI has announced its intentions to investigate the failure of the school district to comply with its reporting obligations.

— In Washington, D.C., the Mayor’s 2023 budget calls for keeping police officers in schools, setting up another clash with the D.C. Council, which voted last year to phase out police in school buildings despite strong opposition from the mayor’s administration.

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Safety Law News for April 1, 2022

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— In Pennsylvania, the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania ruled on appeal that a school district’s decision to expel a public high school student, based on his act of posting violent song lyrics to social media, outside of school hours and while not on school property, violated his free speech rights.  Educators concluded that the student’s speech constituted harassment, was a terroristic threat, and had disrupted the school environment.  The court ruled that the student, “did not explicitly target specific …students, let alone the broader School District community…. [such that] where a student’s properly contextualized, off-campus speech is not distinctly connected to school activities or clearly directed towards members of their educational community, a public school’s reach exceeds its constitutional grasp.”  Appeal of G.S. by & through Snyder

— In Wisconsin, students from La Crosse Central High School are planning to speak to the School District of La Crosse’s Board of Education.  Their mission is to present a petition and give board members the students’ support of school resource officers (SRO’s). This movement started over a month ago when the students learned of the District’s plan to reduce the number of officers next year.

— In Michigan, the School Safety Task Force, created by the legislature after the deadly shooting at Oxford High School late 2021, has published preliminary recommendations on school safety.  The Task Force wants schools to remove immediate threats to classrooms sooner.  This end will be served by improving communication among schools, local law enforcement, and the state’s OK2Say tip line, requiring ongoing safety training for school resource officers and other school staff, and adding a staff member in each district to oversee mental health services, security, and threat assessment.

— In New York, the Schenectady City School Board passed a resolution for the return of school resource officers (“community engagement officers”) to the schools.  “The school board said it has participated in a school resource officer pilot program in the past, and it has worked out well.”

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Safety Law News for March 23, 2022

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— In Michigan, the United States Court of Appeals, affirmed the denial of qualified immunity to an administrator and a school resource officer in an excessive force lawsuit brought by a high school student.  The student was forcibly removed from the school while attempting to reenter the building after school, dislocating and breaking his jaw. The court held that, “(the) use of force was unreasonable in violation of the Fourth Amendment. (The student) was not suspected of any serious crime, was not posing a threat at the time he was struck and was not resisting arrest. On those facts, (the officer’s) striking (the student) with such force as to break his jaw is gratuitous violence amounting to unreasonably excessive force under the Fourth Amendment…To be sure, school “administrators” have a “substantial interest in maintaining discipline in the classroom and on school grounds…(but the administrator) used an excessive amount of force to accomplish his interest.” E.W. v. Detroit Public School District

— A study by the American Psychological Association (APA) found that during the pandemic, rates of violence and aggression against K-12 school personnel were high, despite most schools being remote during the survey. A third of teachers surveyed reported they experienced at least one incident of verbal and/or threatening violence from students during COVID. Those incidents included verbal threats, cyber bullying, intimidation, and sexual harassment. More than two in five school administrators reported verbal or threatening violence from parents during the pandemic.

— In Ohio, teachers in the state are speaking out against a bill that would allow schools to more easily arm teachers in school.  In the proposed legislation (HB 99), teachers and staff would have to undergo 20 hours of training, plus four additional hours each year, 35 times less than the peace officer training requirement.

— In Michigan, state lawmakers are considering a school safety program that would put gunpowder-sniffing detection dogs into high schools around the state.  If a pilot program is successful, then officials would extend the program to every Michigan high school.  Each dog and trainer costs $80,000 per year for a school district.