Uncategorized

Safety Law News for February 12, 2019

by  • 

• In California, the Salinas City Elementary School District, for the third time, rejected a school resource officer program.  The 4-0 vote, with one abstention, reflects the community’s disapproval of the presence of police on their campuses.  One board member is opposed to the access police will have to student information if the district implements a program.

• In Maryland, the Baltimore City School Board is discussing again the issue of whether police officers should be armed inside schools during the school day, something the school board has unanimously rejected.  The campus shooting of a special education teacher by a visitor to the school on February 8, 2019, is spurring calls for a new policy.  The unarmed school police officer had to call for help.

• In Massachusetts, officials in Worcester are reporting that juvenile arrests continue to trend down for males and females as well as for all racial and ethnic groups.  School-based arrests have also declined. The Superintendent attributes the decrease to three factors: school resource officers who have developed positive relationships with students and staff; prior misreporting of arrests statistics; and a policy change that made disrupting a school assembly a nonarrestable offense.  The results are consistent with the Worcester Youth Violence and Prevention Strategic Plan.

• In Georgia, the legislature has approved a midyear budget adjustment that increases funding for school safety.  It allocates $30,000 for each public school in the state for increased security measures, including school resource officers. It also includes over $8 million for mental health resources.

Uncategorized

Safety Law News for February 8, 2019.

by  • 

In Washington State, officials in the Spokane Public Schools are under criticism for hiring a school resource officer who’s repeatedly been accused of using excessive force.

In North Carolina, the report by the school safety committee created by the Governor after the Parkland, Florida school shootings says North Carolina needs to be proactive and provide money to have an armed police officer at every school in the state.

In Florida, the Clay County School District is quickly implanting a plan to create its own police force.  The plan calls for hiring 47 staff members, including a Chief, two Lieutenants, four Sergeants, 36 School Resource Officers, three Relief SRO’s, and one Detective.

In Kentucky, the Senate Education Committee began consideration of Senate Bill 1, the “School Safety and Resiliency Act.”  The legislation on school safety is a top priority of the session.  The parents of two Kentucky teenagers killed on January 23, 2018 at Marshall County High School made emotional pleas to officials for the state to put more money into protecting students.

Uncategorized

Safety Law News for February 6, 2019

by  • 

• In New York, the “Saratoga Parents for Safer Schools” have announced its release of an eight point school security plan which addresses the safety needs of the Saratoga Springs school district.  The plan acknowledges the concerns of parents on both sides of the school security debate.

• In Pennsylvania, the Spring Grove Area School District is the first district in the state to offer a specialized mental health training session for its school-based law enforcement officers.

• In Rhode Island, students and community activists in Providence are calling for the creation of unique safety plans for the Providence Public Schools. The plans would be based on restorative justice, removing law enforcement officers from each school and replacing them with additional guidance counselors.

• In Florida, officials in Broward County have authorized police access to real-time monitoring of students in school via video surveillance cameras. The new policy is in response to the recommendations contained in the report of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas Public Safety Commission.

Uncategorized

Safety Law News for February 1, 2019

by  • 
  • In Tennessee, officials in Cheatham County schools say vaping and e-cigarettes are a growing problem. 65 citations have been issued so far this school year, up from 20 citations last school year. Officials fear that many of the students are becoming addicted to nicotine.  Officials in other states have similar concerns.  In Brevard County Florida, the number of students suspended for tobacco possession has nearly tripled.

 

 

 

  • In California, the United States District Court refused to dismiss a liability lawsuit for harassment under Title IX brought by parents whose children were assaulted by a middle-school student who had a known history of sexually inappropriate behavioral issues. The court ruled that there was no doubt that the school was on notice and acted with deliberate indifference by allowing the bully to remain in school, without taking any remedial action. (J.R. by and Through Ringer v. Lakeport Unified School District)
Uncategorized

Safety Law News for January 29, 2019

by  • 
  • In Florida, the United States Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit, held that the Palm Beach County School Board did not violate the rights of its employees by requiring all applicants for substitute teacher positions to submit to and pass a drug test as a condition of employment. The court ruled that suspicionless drug testing was permissible because “ensuring the safety of millions of schoolchildren in the mandatory supervision and care of the state…are compelling concerns.” (Friedenberg v. School Board of Palm Beach County)

 

  • In Pennsylvania, the United States District Court held that a student’s constitutional rights were not violated when school officials expelled him for promoting school violence by threatening to shoot a teacher. The court ruled that language reasonably perceived as threatening school violence is not constitutionally protected. The court also held that school officials must have significant discretionary decision-making ability to maintain a safe environment.  (J.R. by and Through Redden v. Penns Manor Area School District)

 

 

Uncategorized

Safety Law News for January 25, 2019

by  • 
  • In New Mexico, the United States District Court upheld searches by school officials of an entire class after a student reported that someone stole $210. The court held that the pat down searches were “justified at its inception because Defendants possessed reasonable suspicion,” and were reasonable in scope under the standard that searches possess a “moderate chance of finding evidence of wrongdoing.” (Woods v. Rio Rancho Public Schools)

 

  • In New Mexico, the United States District Court held that a school resource officer did not use excessive force when he deployed a taser that struck a special needs student who left campus while running away from school officials. The court ruled that to establish a claim for violation of the Fourth Amendment through excessive force, a person must show both that a “seizure” occurred and that the seizure was “unreasonable. The court concluded that there was no seizure because the student, after being tased, failed to submit and eluded the officer.  (Gutierrez v. Albuquerque Public Schools)

 

  • In Louisiana, the Court of Appeal of Louisiana upheld the finding of liability against both a school resource officer and the city for tortious behavior when 22 elementary school students, who were identified as bullies, were forced to kneel in gravel as punishment. The court ruled that the SRO was acting in his capacity as a police officer and that his tort was attributable to the city because he was at the elementary school at the request of the school. (Carter v. Pointe Coupee Parish School Board)