May  17,  2016     The  Hon.  Greg  Abbott     Office  of  the  Governor   P.O.  Box  12428   Austin,  Texas  78711-­‐2428     Dear  Governor  Abbott,     We  know  that  school  leaders  and  school  police  encounter  many  challenges  as  they   seek  to  ensure  all  Texas  kids  are  able  to  learn  in  safe  school  environments.  However,   we  write  to  you  today  in  the  wake  of  what  are  just  the  two  most  recent  examples  of   inappropriate  uses  of  force  by  a  school-­‐based  law  enforcement  officer  on  a  student.     These  examples  highlight  the  need  for  a  robust  dialogue  around  the  appropriate  role   of  law  enforcement  officers  in  our  schools  and  the  need  for  all  school  police  officers   to  receive  youth-­‐specific  training.       Just  last  month,  a  lawsuit  was  filed  against  the  Abilene  Independent  School  District   (ISD),  Abilene  Police  Department,  and  a  School  Resource  Officer  (SRO)  employed  by   the  Abilene  Police  Department.1    The  complaint  details  the  brutality  endured  by   three  young  students  in  Abilene  ISD.    One  of  the  students  was  only  six  years  old.     According  to  reports,  this  45-­‐pound  student  was  lifted  up  off  of  the  floor  by  the  SRO   in  a  painful  restraint  intended  for  use  on  non-­‐compliant  adult  criminals,  then   slammed  into  a  desk  –  all  in  response  to  a  tantrum  intended  to  prevent  his  mother   from  leaving  him  in  an  unfamiliar  school.     In  early  April,  at  a  San  Antonio  ISD  middle  school,  a  cell  phone  video  captured   footage  of  a  12-­‐year-­‐old  girl  being  body-­‐slammed  face-­‐first  into  the  ground  by  an   SRO  after  the  officer  intervened  in  a  shouting  match  between  the  12-­‐year-­‐old  and   another  girl.  The  viral  video  sparked  national  outrage.2           This  is  not  the  first  time  that  Texas  has  been  the  focus  of  national  attention  as  the   result  of  inappropriate  force  used  by  a  school  police  officer.  You  may  recall  that  we   raised  these  issues3  after  a  Bastrop  ISD  student,  Noe  Niño  de  Rivera,  was  Tasered   after  breaking  up  a  school  fight  between  two  other  students  in  November  2013.   Video  showed  Noe  backing  away  from  the  officer  when  he  was  Tasered.  Noe  spent    1                                                                                                               KTXS, Abilene ISD, former officer sued by students for excessive force, April, 29, 2016, available at http://www.ktxs.com/news/abilene-isd-former-officer-sued-by-students-for-excessive-force/39294202. 2 San Antonio Express-News, San Antonio school officer fired after video showed him slam 12-year-old girl onto concrete, April 11, 2016, available at http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/local/article/San-Antonio-school-officerfired-after-video-7241303.php. 3 Texas Tribune, Groups Urge TEA to Ban Use of Tasers, Spray in Schools, February 13, 2014; Texas Tribune, Advocates Urge Perry to Ban Tasers in Schools, April 15, 2014,   1   52  days  in  a  coma  and  suffered  from  a  traumatic  brain  injury  as  a  result  of  that   interaction  –  his  life  permanently  changed.4     In  letters  to  state  leadership,  we  documented  media  reports5  from  across  the  state   that  showed  that  dangerous  interactions  between  school  police  officers  and   students  are  not  isolated  to  just  one  bad  officer,  one  school  district,  or  one  region,   but  are  part  of  a  pattern  of  inappropriate  use  of  force  by  law  enforcement  in  our   schools.6  Many  of  these  incidents  involved  use  of  a  Taser  or  pepper  spray  on  a   student  –  often  in  a  situation  that  could  have  been  de-­‐escalated  without  resorting  to   these  dangerous  tools.  The  risks  associated  with  Taser  and  pepper  spray  use  on   children  are  well  documented.7  In  addition  to  health  risks,  experts  condemn  heavy-­‐ handed  use  of  force  on  young  people  because  it  is  counterproductive,  traumatic,  and   undermines  the  relationship  between  youth  and  the  police  officers  with  whom  they   interact.8        4                                                                                                               Austin American Statesman, Video, documents raise new questions in Cedar Creek student Taser case, February 3, 2014, available at http://www.statesman.com/news/news/local/video-documents-raise-new-questions-in-cedarcreek/ndBZD/ 5 Stella M. Chavez, Duncanville School Officer Used Pepper Spray on Teen, Aunt Says, Dallas Morning News, September 5, 2007 (Duncanville ISD); Rhiannon Meyers, 50 Ball Students Treated for Pepper Spray, The Daily News, September 21, 2007 (Galveston ISD); Rhiannon Meyers, Schools Pick Weapons to Battle Brawling, KUOU.com, October 1, 2007(Houston area schools); KTRK News, Student Shocked by School Officer’s Taser, October 12, 2007 (Houston ISD); Kevin Quinn, Texas High School Student Tased by School Police, Katy Times, October 27, 2008 (Katy ISD); Staff Reports, Police Use Pepper Spray on Students, The Daily News, January 22, 2009 (Galveston ISD); KPRC News, Pepper Spray Used During Food Fight, Click2Houston.com, February 6, 2009 (Spring ISD); KVUE News, Deputies: Westwood Student Hit with Taser, KVUE.com, February 17, 2009 (Round Rock ISD); Tawnell D. Hobbs, Pepper Spray Prompts Evacuation in Hillcrest High, Dallas Morning News, April 21, 2009 (Dallas ISD); MRT.com, Police use pepper spray, arrest students after fight; Midland Reporter-­‐Telegram, January 22, 2009 (Ector ISD). KWTX News, Texas Teacher Uses Pepper Spray to Break Up School Fight, KWTX.com, October 1, 2009 (Ft. Worth Charter School); Melissa B. Taboada & Mark Lisheron, 10 Manor High Students Detained after Brawls, Austin American Statesman, October 20, 2009 (12 students treated for pepper spray used to break up fights)(Manor ISD); Erin Cushing, Chemical Agent Used in Disturbance at Cushing Graduation, The Daily Sentinel, June 1, 2010 (Cushing ISD); CBS 11 News, Student Hit with Stun Gun in School Cafeteria, September 22, 2010 (Grand Prairie ISD); Felicia Frazar, SPD: Teen subdued with Taser at SHS, September 1, 2011 (Seguin ISD); Nick Lawton, Pepper Spray Controversy at MISD, September 2011 (Midland ISD); Staff Writer, Pepper Spray Used in High School Fight, November 10, 2011 (Spring ISD); KHOU.com Staff, CyFair students subdued by pepper spray at school after altercation with officers, October 19, 2012 (Cypress Fairbanks ISD); KTRK-­‐TV, Six Pasadena HS students treated for pepper spray exposure, September 6, 2012 (Pasadena ISD); Glenn, Mike, Cleveland school officer users Taser on student, Houston Chronicle, December 10, 2013 (Cleveland ISD). 6 Houston Chronicle, Local school police used force on students hundreds of times in recent years, March 27, 2015 available at http://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/Local-school-police-used-force-onstudents-6164190.php. 7 Emitting a shock of up to 50,000 volts, Tasers are designed to restrain adults. Medical professionals have begun to raise concerns that the misuse of such weapons can cause cardiac arrest and death when used on adults. Douglas P. Zipes, Sudden Cardiac Arrest and Death Associated with Application of Shocks from a TASER Electronic Control Device, available at http://circ.ahajournals.org/content/early/2012/04/20/CIRCULATIONAHA.112.097584.abstract. Tasers, in particular, are increasingly understood as a lethal – rather than “less than lethal” – weapon. See State v. Rivera, 716 S.E.2d 859 (stun gun can be considered a dangerous weapon); Bryan v. MacPherson, 630 F.3d 805, 814 (9th Cir. 2010) (injuries from Tasers can be dangerous and even fatal). Chemical restraints pose real physical dangers to targeted youth, as well as students, teachers, and school resource officers who aren’t targets but are exposed to the harsh chemicals. See Texas Criminal Justice Coalition, Pepper Spray in the Texas Youth Commission: Research Review and Policy Recommendations (2007). Precisely this type of scenario has already been reported in a Texas school at least once. In 2009, several students in a Dallas ISD high school had to be taken to the hospital after pepper spray, used to break up a fight, was circulated through the school’s ventilation system. Tawnell D. Hobbs, Pepper Spray Prompts Evacuation in Hillcrest High, Dallas Morning News, April 21, 2009. 8 Smith, M. & Bowman, K.M.. The Restraint Spiral: Emergent Themes in the Perceptions of the Physical Restraint of Juveniles, Child Welfare 88: 57-83 (2009); Wiley, S.A. & Esbensen, F., The Effect of Police Contact: Does Official Intervention Result in Deviance Amplification?, Crime & Delinquency, (July 2013).   2   These  reported  incidents  demonstrate  time  and  again  officers  using  force  on   students  who  do  not  pose  an  immediate  threat  –  students  who  are  breaking  up   fights,9  girls  yelling  at  one  another,10  students  unwilling  to  give  up  a  cell  phone,11   and  a  student  walking  away  from  school.12  Videos  like  the  one  that  surfaced  in  San   Antonio  in  early  April  –  and  descriptions  of  incidents  like  the  three  outlined  in  the   Abilene  ISD  complaint  –  come  to  light  all  too  often,  in  school  districts  all  across   Texas.       As  education  and  civil  rights  advocates,  we  also  urge  you  to  end  Texas’  participation   in  the  Department  of  Defense  (DOD)  1033  Program’s  transfer  of  military  weapons  to   local  school  districts  and  police  departments  for  use  in  K-­‐12  public  schools.  Adding   the  presence  of  military-­‐grade  weapons  to  school  climates  that  have  become   increasingly  hostile  due  to  their  overreliance  on  police  to  handle  routine  student   discipline  can  only  exacerbate  existing  tensions,  intensifying  overly  punitive  school   climates.  All  of  us  want  to  ensure  that  schools  are  safe  places  for  learning  and  for   teaching.  However,  when  school  police  use  weapons  of  war  or  breach  the  trust  that   parents  place  in  them  by  engaging  in  inappropriate  and  traumatizing  interactions   with  school  children,  this  goal  is  undermined.         Last  session,  the  Texas  legislature  took  an  important  step  by  passing  a  bill  that   requires  specialized  training  for  school  police  in  large  school  districts.13  However,   the  bill  limited  the  training  requirements  to  districts  with  30,000  students  or  more.   Abilene  ISD  is  a  stark  example  of  the  need  to  ensure  that  all  Texas  school-­‐based   police  officers  receive  training  specific  to  the  youth  they  interact  with  every  day.   Unfortunately,  we  also  know  that  training  is  not  enough.  San  Antonio  ISD  has  long   been  a  leader  in  training  its  school  police  officers,  requiring  them  to  complete  40   hours  of  “Children’s  Crisis  Intervention  Training,”  more  than  double  that  required   by  the  bill  passed  last  session.  Training  is  critical,  but  more  needs  to  be  done.       Given  your  strong  support  of  education  and  background  as  the  state’s  top  law   enforcement  officer,  we  would  like  to  work  together  to  ensure  all  students  are  able   to  learn  in  safe  school  environments  and  school  police  have  clearly  defined  roles   and  effective  training.           We  respectfully  ask  you  to  appoint  a  special  task  force  to  examine  school  policing   issues  leading  up  to  the  next  legislative  session.    This  task  force  should  be  asked  to   make  recommendations  that  will  not  compromise  school  safety,  but  will  ensure  that                                                                                                                   9 Claire Osborn, Officer uses Taser on Round Rock student trying to break up fight, Aus. Am. Statesman, April 14, 2014. 10 KPRC, Cleveland ISD student tasered by police officer on school bus, December 10, 2013, available at http://www.click2houston.com/news/cleveland-isd-student-tasered-by-police-officer-on-schoolbus_2015112404111510 11 KHOU, Student tackled by officers over cell phone tells her side of the story, September 3, 2014, available at http://legacy.khou.com/story/news/local/neighborhood/2014/09/03/student-tackled-by-officers-over-cell-phone-tellsher-side-of-the-story/15040013/ 12 Austin American Statesman, Police used Taser on Round Rock student, Sept. 17, 2014, available at http://www.statesman.com/news/news/local/police-used-taser-on-round-rock-student/nhPcB/ 13 Texas Legislature. HB 2684. 84th Regular Legislative Session.   3   the  kind  of  inappropriate  uses  of  force  against  our  students  that  we  continue  to  see   statewide  no  longer  occur.    The  task  force  should  consist  of:     • Parents,  at  least  one  of  them  with  a  child  who  has  been  subjected  to   inappropriate  use  of  force  at  school;   • Students;   • Teachers;   • School  administrators,  including  personnel  focused  on  student  behavior;   • School  police  officers,  from  both  ISD  police  departments  and  contracted   through  local  police  departments;   • Police  leadership  such  as  an  ISD  Police  Chief  or  SRO  coordinator  from  a  local   police  department;   • Youth  advocates;  and   • Experts  in  youth  development,  children’s  mental  health  and  children  with   disabilities.       Creating  a  Task  Force  to  study  these  issues  and  make  recommendations  for  change   will  go  a  long  way  toward  ensuring  all  students,  educators  and  school  police  are   working  together  to  create  safe  school  environments,  preventing  incidents  like  the   those  that  have  been  the  subject  of  headlines  so  that  schools  and  communities  are   not  simply  left  to  react  each  time  a  new  video  –  or  lawsuit  –  emerges.         We  are  happy  to  answer  any  questions  you  may  have,  and  look  forward  to  working   with  you  and  your  office  to  ensure  Texas  schools  are  safe  and  supportive  learning   environments  for  our  students.     Sincerely,     Texans  Care  for  Children    512-­‐473-­‐2274    www.txchildren.org     Texas  Appleseed    512-­‐473-­‐2800    www.texasappleseed.org     American  Civil  Liberties  Union  of  Texas    512-­‐478-­‐7300  x106    www.aclutx.org     Children’s  Defense  Fund—Texas    www.cdftexas.org     Grassroots  Leadership    www.grassrootsleadership.org     Mental  Health  America  Texas    www.mhatexas.org     Mexican  American  Legal  Defense  Fund    www.maldef.org     National  Alliance  on  Mental  Illness  (NAMI)  Texas    www.namitexas.org       Texas  Organizing  Project    www.organizetexas.org     4