— In Colorado, Colorado Court of Appeals ruled that a school resource officer violated the rights of a student by seizing and searching the student after receiving a tip that the student had been seen firing a gun in a social media video. The court ruled that the anonymous tips about potential school safety concerns, “(were) insufficient to provide reasonable suspicion to justify (the) search of defendant’s backpack, which produced marijuana and drug paraphernalia.” The court rejected the argument of the school that the student had a history of misbehavior and of bringing drugs to school, ruling that the “school officer must have a particularized and objective basis for suspecting (a gun).” People In Int. of C.C-S.
— In New York, officials in Buffalo are revising their school safety policies in the wake of a spate of incidents. The teachers’ union is criticizing recent school discipline reforms, reporting that, “it’s unacceptable that we’re letting the small minority of students commit these violent acts.” A 14-year-old female student attacked a teacher, two elementary students were involved in a stabbing assault, and violent incidents occurred at the high school involving guns. The teachers union issued a vote of no-confidence in the Buffalo Public Schools superintendent, citing the safety concerns. The superintendent resigned.
— In Mississippi, the Mississippi Department of Education has announced that 135 school districts have chosen to receive the new health, school safety platform, “nSide health.” The web-based platform provides surveillance cameras, programming for a 360-degree live, virtual walkthrough of a school to provide situational awareness in emergencies, a mobile app for notification of emergencies and to notify staff and emergency responders, and assistance with creating and managing emergency operations.
— In Texas, official for the DeSoto ISD cancelled classes to reevaluate school safety policies after a violence involving a substitute teacher and a student. School officials have announced that when students return, every school will have staff monitoring hallways and common areas, employees with the district’s student support services department will now move from district headquarters to campuses to provide faster response, and students will not be allowed to use cell phones, earbuds and headphones during the school day.