— In North Carolina, the North Carolina Court of Appeals denied immunity to school officials arising out of the sexual assault of a student who participated in an after-school program by an outside organization that rented the school facility. The outside organization “provided after-school language programming to students.” School officials conducted “a criminal background check on (the organization), which showed (that one member of the organization) had been accused of multiple other assaults on both children and adult women between 1993 and 2009. The background check also revealed (that the same person) had previously been extradited to Georgia because of an investigation for allegedly sexually assaulting a child there.” Despite this, school officials permitted the outside organization to provide after-school services to students and “failed to inform its principals and students’ parents about the results of their investigation and background check.” After a student was assaulted numerous times, a lawsuit was filed. The appellate court affirmed the ruling of the lower court that neither the school district nor any of the individuals school officials were entitled to immunity. The ruling relied upon the rule of law that in North Carolina that “a school board may waive governmental immunity are by purchasing liability insurance, or when engaging in a proprietary¸ as opposed to governmental, function.” As a result, the school district, “when allowing (the outside organization) to use its facilities was engaged in a propriety function, thereby waiving governmental immunity.” As to the individual school officials, the rule is that “immunity is a judicially created doctrine which shields public officials from personal liability for claims arising from discretionary acts or acts constituting mere negligence, by virtue of their office, and within the scope of their governmental duties.” Therefore, the individual school officials “were not acting as public officials and are therefore not entitled to its protections.” The appellate court concluded that the school district and the individual school officials “essentially stepped into the shoes of a landlord renting property to a company when it allowed (the outside organization) to operate its business on school property.” Brady v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education
— In Michigan, Metro Detroit school districts are hiring armed security guards. “Fortis Security is contracted by 15 schools and school districts across Metro Detroit and provides armed security for 50 school buildings. Most of their employees are retired law enforcement officers.”
— In Florida, “(t)he most recent safety assessment for Broward County schools found deficiencies in security camera coverage – particularly in outdoor areas and some blind spots in buildings.”
— In South Carolina, “(a)t least 153 unvaccinated students exposed to measles in South Carolina schools are quarantining, according to local health officials. In a media briefing… officials confirmed these students were exposed contacts without immunity, leaving them to be excluded from school until the period of potential disease transmission has ended.”