As part of a Kentucky court case in which two elementary students were handcuffed by the SRO, the US Department of Justice submitted a Statement of Interest about the how SRO’s should deal with youth, particular students with disabilities. In the statement, DOJ focused on:
1) Intended Roles of School Resource Officers: SROs should have clearly defined roles, which are emphasized in specialized training regarding work with children and children with disabilities. SROs should not be involved in routine school discipline matters, but rather should be focused on serious threats to the safety of the school and community;
2) Standards for Evaluation of Legality: To assess the legality of the SRO’s actions, the court must decide whether handcuffing the children was “reasonable,” given the circumstances and including such factors as age, disability status, severity of offense, and threat to safety; and
3) Application of Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act: Like other law enforcement officers, SROs are required to comply with the anti-discrimination mandate of the Americans with Disability Act (ADA). Therefore, SROs are required to make reasonable modifications to procedures when working with individuals with disabilities and to refrain from practices that have a discriminatory effect on children with disabilities.
These things clearly make sense on how students with disabilities should be treated, but they make sense for all students as well. Many have called for ending the school – law enforcement SRO relationships that become part of the “school to prison pipeline”.
That may be an unrealistic expectation in this day and age – but if schools are going to continue to partner with local law enforcement to have an SRO in their school, expectations need to be clear and limited and not drive students deeper into the justice system. By Karissa Propson and Jim Moeser
