State lawmakers on Wednesday considered new rules governing the information school systems receive about children charged with certain serious crimes.
When a minor is arrested for crimes such as murder, sexual offenses, armed carjacking or arson, existing regulations require law enforcement to give the child’s school principal, school superintendent and any school police officers information about the charges. If the child transfers school districts, the old school system is allowed, but not required, to give that information to the new school system.
The State Department of Education has proposed a new rule requiring school systems to share that information.
“The intent of the reportable offense law is to not punish the student, but instead to provide the local education agency and ultimately the principal with the information that may impact the safety dynamics within the school community,” Carey Wright, state superintendent of schools, told members of the state legislative committee that oversees regulatory changes. “The transfer of this information to another institution is critical for the maintenance of a safe and secure school environment.”
If state lawmakers approve the new rules, they will take effect immediately, without the usual 30-day public comment period, because the proposed regulation is classified as an “emergency.”
State schools officials also suggested that they will seek additional legal changes to further increase the information that gets shared between law enforcement, the Department of Juvenile Services and school entities.
“When students are detained [in the criminal justice system], there is a break in the information chain,” Wright said. “Our local education agencies do not always know where these students are being placed, nor do they have access to information about when the student is being released back into the community.”
Unlike local school systems, the Department of Juvenile Services and adult detention centers are not allowed to share information about minors’ interactions with the justice system. Changing that, Wright said, would require a change in the law.
