• In Colorado, the Durango School District 9-R board has decided not to arm school security guards with firearms after months of heated community debate. The district’s announcement followed a survey. The survey showed the community supporting arming school security guards 51.7% to 48.3%. The survey explained that security guards would be former police officers who would be highly trained in firearm use.
• In California, in a five to two vote, board members of the Sacramento City Unified School District finalized the decision to reduce the number of police on campus. The district is experimenting with new models for school safety and law enforcement’s role on its campuses.
• In Virginia, the Virginia Court of Appeals affirmed the conviction of a student for violating gang-free school zone laws. The student argued that Miranda warnings were required when he was questioned by his assistant principal and two officers six months prior to the incident that led to his arrest. The court ruled that “[p]olice officers are not required to administer Miranda warnings to everyone whom they question.” The court applied the following factors and held that the student was not in custody. (1) the manner in which the individual was summoned by the police, (2) the familiarity or neutrality of the surroundings, (3) the number of officers present, (4) the degree of physical restraint, (5) the duration and character of the interrogation, and (6) the extent to which the officers’ beliefs concerning the potential culpability of the individual being questioned were manifested to the individual. (Melvin Yovany Argueta-Diaz v. Commonwealth of Virginia)
• In Illinois, the Appellate Court of Illinois affirmed the decision of the Board of Education of the City of Chicago to fire without a written warning a tenured teacher for striking a ten-year-old student in the face. The court ruled that the use of force far exceeded the scope of any reasonable force necessary to maintain safety and discipline inside the school. (Don Huddleston v. Illinois State Board of Education)
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