— In Illinois, the Appellate Court of Illinois reversed the judgment of the trial court and remanded for trial a lawsuit brought by parents of a 10-year-old whose fingers were amputated by a roller gate fence at the elementary school playground. The lower court ruled that the roller gate fence was an open and obvious danger to a 10-year-old child such that educators had no duty to protect the student. The appellate court disagreed, ruling that whether a dangerous condition is open and obvious is a question of fact to be decided at trial. It stated that, “when considering whether a danger is open and obvious to a reasonable child of similar age and experience, it is not just the physical instrument or landscape at issue, but also the way a child intends to interact with them.” Therefore, dismissal was improper because, “a jury might reasonably find that (the student’s) failure to appreciate the risks associated with the instant roller gate fence was typical for a child of similar age and experience.” Wright v. Waukegan Community Unit School District 60
— In Texas, school officials in rural Medina County are asking the Commissioners Court to consider funding six school resource officers for each school district in the county. They are also considering arming staff members to solve the delay problem in receiving police assistance in an active shooter incident.
— In Kansas, officials in Saint George are placing greater emphasis on its Rapid Response and Deployment Policy 411. The policy reinforces the jurisdiction’s commitment to protect children by requiring “officers (to) take immediate action, if reasonably practicable while requesting additional assistance” in a school shooting… “(rather than) wait for additional resources to arrive at the scene before they hunt down and eliminate any threat posed to children.”
— In Indiana, House Bill 1093 has been enacted. It requires all school resource officers to receive specific training by next summer, eliminating a gap in the previous law that allowed untrained officers to patrol schools.