— In Maryland, the United States District Court refused to dismiss a lawsuit brought by students who alleged that they were improperly subjected to video recording at school without their knowledge or consent while they were dressing for school-sponsored event. The court held that the students had reasonable expectation of privacy in principal’s office. The unauthorized video recording constituted a “search” within the meaning of the Fourth Amendment and the case of New Jersey v. T.L.O., 469 U.S. 325 7 (1985). Further, the court refused to grant educators qualified immunity because the rights granted students under the Fourth Amendment were clearly established. “Even before considering (students’) allegation that the (educators’) motivation was sexual in nature, there is no basis to conclude that the video recording was either justified at the inception or conducted in a manner reasonably related in scope to circumstances that would justify the search.” Does 1-22 v. Board. of Education of Prince George’s County
— In Denver, high school students at Denver Public Schools staged a “walk-out” to protest the absence of police on their campuses. Denver Public Schools did away with the school resource officer program in 2020. A growing, diverse body of students now want police to return. “I shouldn’t have to fight for SROs to be in the building,” a student of color commented. “I should feel safe enough without them, but we have had way too many instances where I feel SROs could have been a help in our building and they just weren’t there… I agreed when they removed SROs in 2020, but now I am at a school that has been affected by gun violence and I don’t feel safe.”
— In Massachusetts, campus safety committees at the Timberlane and Salem schools are assessing crisis policies and implementing new procedures. Lockdown protocols for active threats and ALICE training are being installed. “All four Timberlane towns — Plaistow, Atkinson, Sandown and Danville — and their law enforcement agencies are involved with the new response plan.”
— In Connecticut, Raised Bill No. 1095 has been introduced to shift duties among local agencies who protect students in school. If enacted, the provisions of the law would, “require Connecticut school districts employing SROs to develop a set of policies covering the use of restraints and firearms by those officers, as well as their ability to make school-based arrests. The bill would also give school districts the option of transferring some of the duties of SROs to other trained staff members, including school counselors, social workers, psychologists and aides.”