News on Physical Restraint and Seclusion

Classroom cameras are being proposed to address questions about whether restraint and seclusion are being over-used or inappropriately-used with students with disabilities. Texas has the first law requiring school districts to place cameras in special education classrooms upon parental request.

An attorney in Iowa City, Iowa has filed a complaint with the state Department of Education alleging that the local district’s “use of seclusion rooms for agitated students violates federal law because many parents don’t know about the small enclosures and the rooms are being used more broadly than intended.” The lawsuit also alleges that “black students were disproportionately put into Iowa City seclusion rooms in 2013-14.”

A U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights’s investigation found that a California School District violated an autistic student’s rights under the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. An elementary school student who suffers from autism, anxiety, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, was physically retrained 92 times over an 11-month period. In addition to the “severe,” “pervasive” and “persistent” use of face-down “prone” restraints, OCR found that the student was secluded for hours in a room he could not leave. OCR investigators determined that the student regressed academically and became suicidal.

At least five Kentucky districts had trained staff in Aikido Control Training to physically restrain students. Kentucky Education Commissioner Stephen Pruitt warned districts this week that the technique may put students into harmful positions banned under a state law.

A former student has filed suit against Jackson Public School District, its board of trustees, and Superintendent Dr. Cedric Gray, reports Courthouse News Service, alleging that school officials at Capital City Alternative School (CCAS) routinely handcuff students to fixed objects where they were forced to eat lunch and unable to use the restroom for extended periods of time.

A school officer was fired at the San Antonio Independent School District after being caught on camera body-slamming a 12-year-old female student. Superintendent Pedro Martinez said in a statement that “We understand that situations can sometimes escalate to the point of requiring a physical response; however, in this situation we believe that the extent of the response was absolutely unwarranted” and “We want to be clear that we will not tolerate this behavior.”

A substitute teacher is suing the school, claiming she was fired after recording a security officer restraining a 12-year old student. Now the parents of the student say they plan a lawsuit as well, saying their daughter was mistreated. The child's parents are thankful the substitute didn't delete the video, "Because if she didn't film this, this stuff would keep going on in schools and it could get worse."

This mother's blog post portrays the abusive use of a "focus room" or seclusion room with her 9 year old son, Alex. Unfortunately, this story is not unique and Alex's mother calls for a raise in awareness of these issues.

The article focuses on the experience of Greater Albany Education Association leader Sue McGrory in Oregon, who has received over 100 emails from teachers since the school year began asking for advice about how to deal with “out-of-control” students who throw chairs or tantrums. McGrory says appeals to school administrators are often ineffective, “We’re losing countless hours of instructional time. What we are doing is not working."

A federal district court in Alabama has ruled that school resource officers (SRO) that used chemical spray on students who were accused of minor offenses and offered no resistance to being detained (seized), violated those students’ Fourth Amendment right to be free from excessive force.

A federal judge rules incidents of Birmingham, Ala., police officers using a mix of pepper spray and tear gas to spray students in school who were resisting arrest or posing a threat to others to be unconstitutional excessive force. The Southern Poverty Law Center lauded the ruling as a victory for those concerned about harsh police involvement in routine school-based discipline.

Connecticut officials are looking to change the law and improve staff training to cut the usage of restraint and seclusion in schools after a February report indicated “significant concern” regarding the usage of the measures on autistic and disabled children.

Wyatt reports that a bill to make “public schools legally liable for student safety” passed the Colorado state Senate on Tuesday, “after an emotional debate about whether the measure would reduce shooting attacks or just invite lawsuits.” The piece notes that few states give “express permission for victims to sue schools for negligence.” Frank also covers this story in the Denver Post. The bill was named after Claire Davis, a 17-year-old student killed in a school shooting at Arapaho High School in 2013.

U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights’ investigation found that the Prince William County Public Schools’ (PWCPS) frequent use of restraint, seclusion, and removal from classrooms of students with emotional disabilities amounted to a “one-size-fits-all” approach to behavior management that took away instructional time and did not account for individual student needs.

The Connecticut Department of Education reports that children with autism were the most frequently subjected to restraint or seclusio in Connecticut schools in the 2012-13 school year.