ACLU settles with Douglas County schools over arrest of student with autism

In a victory for the ACLU, the Douglas County School District and local law enforcement have been forced to reach a settlement following a lawsuit over the arrest of a student with autism.

The incident, which occurred in August 2019 at Sagewood Middle School, has sparked community outrage and calls for reform from the disability rights community.

The lawsuit, filed on behalf of the child's parents by the ACLU of Colorado, claimed that the Douglas County School District and the Douglas County Sheriff failed to properly train the officers involved in handling students with disabilities.

The district contracts with the sheriff to place law enforcement in its schools.

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The incident began when a classmate wrote on the student with markers, causing him to become agitated. According to reports, the student then poked the classmate with a pencil. Instead of seeking medical attention or defusing the situation, the officers involved handcuffed the 11-year-old and placed him in a patrol car for hours.

The student was later taken to a juvenile detention center, where his parents were forced to pay $25,000 in bail.

Despite calls for disciplinary action, none of the officers involved were reprimanded for their handling of the child. This sparked outrage and ultimately led to the ACLU filing their lawsuit. The organization claimed that the officers lacked proper training in interacting with students with disabilities, de-escalation techniques, and how to keep students safe in these situations.

After more than two years in court, the ACLU announced on Wednesday that all parties involved had reached a settlement.

Under the terms of the settlement, the defendants have agreed to require advanced training for any school resource officer assigned to the district. This training will include input from the disability rights community to improve interactions between law enforcement and students with disabilities.

Additionally, the defendants have agreed to ensure that all SROs review and comply with Behavioral Improvement Plans, which are designed to help students with behavior issues in the classroom. The ACLU stated that these new policies are essential in protecting the rights of students in the district.

The school district, sheriff’s office and the officers agreed to the settlement offer. According to the statement, starting this year:

• Any SRO assigned to a DCSD school must complete training on interacting with people with disabilities, which has been specifically designed for law enforcement.

• SROs shall have access to student Behavioral Intervention Plans (BIPs) consistent with the federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, and SROs shall make reasonable efforts to comply with such plans when interacting with students. This includes the requirement that SROs specifically review, on an annual basis, any BIP for students with an Individualized Education Program (IEP) who have previously demonstrated behavior that poses a safety risk to themselves or others.

• School administrators and licensed mental health staff shall receive annual training regarding SRO roles and responsibilities, including that: (i) SROs are not responsible for requests to resolve routine discipline matters involving students; (ii) where practical, DCSD staff should contact school building administrators to make a determination as to whether to call SROs regarding a dysregulated student who has an IEP; and (iii) for incidents involving a student with an IEP who is dysregulated, school building administrators should only request SRO law enforcement assistance after making reasonable efforts to comply with any de-escalation techniques described in the student’s BIP; and

• SROs shall exercise force consistent with law and DCSO policy, and restraint and seclusion of students by SROs must be avoided to the greatest extent possible without endangering the safety of students and staff. SROs shall also make reasonable efforts to comply with de-escalation techniques described in a student’s BIP, if any, before employing restraint or seclusion against a student.

The school district and the sheriff's office released a joint statement acknowledging the incident and stating that it is rare for a school resource officer to handcuff a student. However, they maintain that the officers involved did nothing wrong.

In a press release, Deborah Richardson, the executive director of the ACLU of Colorado, stated that "student conflict should never be handled like a criminal matter." She praised the revised policies as a step towards ensuring that all students, especially those with disabilities, feel safe at school.