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Safety Law News for February 07, 2018

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  • In Ohio, the Weathersfield Board of Education is restarting its school resource officer program after a nearly 20 year hiatus. Weathersfield Schools Superintendent said the officer will help the district with many issues that involve students while providing an opportunity for kids to have pleasant interactions with a member of law enforcement rather than only seeing officers during difficult or troubling circumstances.

 

  • In Indiana, each of the 52 public and private schools in La Porte County have been equipped with new radio equipment allowing instant access to emergency responders.  In case of an emergency, anyone in the school office can press a button and open a line of communication not just to the 911 dispatch center but to every first responder in the county, including passing patrol cars.

 

  • In California, the Val Verde school board voted 4-1 to form a school police department.  The district has 20,000 students in three high schools, four middle schools, and 12 elementary schools.

 

  • In New York, state legislators have sent to the Governor a bill that would require private schools to follow the same child abuse reporting rules as public schools.  The legislation (A5371/S4342) would require all schools to report suspicions of abuse by any staff, faculty or volunteer in the school environment, whether in a classroom, on a field trip or bus, or during extra-curricular activities.
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Safety Law News for February 2, 2018

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  • In California, officials in Bakersfield are assigning two full-time officers to work with at-risk students to combat high rates of absenteeism.  The new program is a TRIAD-based approach, designed to build a positive relationship between students and law enforcement and provide mentoring to at-risk kids who may not have positive adult role models in their lives.
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Safety Law News for January 31, 2018

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  • In Florida, the Florida District Court of Appeal applied the exigent circumstances exception to affirm the conviction of a shooter who seriously injured a student by firing several bullets towards a bus stop near an elementary school.  Evidence used in the conviction was discovered through the warrantless search of the abandoned cell phone.  [Barton v. State]
  • In Ohio, three Toledo Police Department officers, including a school resource officer, are using vlogs, or video blogs to improve relations with the community through social media use.  Each vlog will focus on a particular unit or topic and can be viewed on YouTube or the department’s other social media accounts.
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Safety Law News for January 25, 2018

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  • In Missouri, the United States District Court ruled that the following factors would determine whether handcuffing a student was a violation of the Fourth Amendment:  whether the student was out of control when the officer arrived, whether student attempted to flee, whether student continued to scream in the hallway with officer, whether student posed a safety threat in the hallway, and how long he was in handcuffs.  [K.W.P. v. Kansas City Public Schools]
  • In Kentucky, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit ruled that an award of $589,000 in compensatory damages and a punitive damages award of $500,000 was not excessive when a police officer wrongfully arrested a school counselor.  The court found that the officer’s conduct evinced clear indifference to or reckless disregard for counselor’s health and safety. [Wesley v. Campbell]
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Safety Law News for January 19, 2018

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  • In Illinois, the Illinois Court of Appeals upheld the power of the juvenile court to expand conditions of probation for an adjudicated delinquent minor to include the removal of any references to gangs, guns, or drugs on the minor’s social media accounts.  [In re R.H.]
  • In Georgia, the United States District Court ruled that the search of a student’s cell phone without a warrant by school officials did not violate the Fourth Amendment.  “Though technology has changed since T.L.O. was handed down, a school official’s search of a student’s cell phone on school property and during the school day still fits within the framework announced in T.L.O.” [Jackson v. McCurry]
  • In New York, the United States District Court ruled that school officials did not violate the rights of a special needs student by twice suspending him for more than ten days without any kind of pre-suspension hearing.  The student was suspended for engaging in “extremely violent and unsafe behavior.”  The court held that because the student was placed in an alternative learning program, he “has not been denied entitlement to public education.”  [Patrick v. Success Academy]
  • In Florida, the District Court of Appeal of Florida overruled the adjudication of a student for violating a state law that makes it “unlawful for any person … [k]nowingly to disrupt or interfere with the lawful administration or functions of any educational institution.” Florida Statutes Section 877.13(1)(a).  The court held that a fight in a school hallway lasting less than one minute is not the type of “flagrant or provocative behavior that rises to the level of specific intent to disrupt the function of the school.”  [M.S. v. State of Florida]
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Safety Law News for January 17, 2018

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  • In Tennessee, a bipartisan group of lawmakers, juvenile court officials, judges, and district attorneys are reacting to the Report by the Blue-Ribbon Task Force on Juvenile Justice.  The Report calls for a major overhaul in the juvenile justice system.  Included in the recommendations are (1) improved data collection and inter-agency information sharing (2) a significant reduction in the ability of school resource officers and school principals to make referrals to juvenile court.
  • In Wisconsin, the Madison School Board and the Madison Police Department are preparing responses to a year-long analysis of the Police Department authorized by the City Council.  The Report was designed to respond, in part, to opposition to police in the schools.  Recommendations include “soft” uniforms for school-based officers, improving communications and data sharing between the agencies and the public; and implementing specialized training for officers assigned to the schools.