FILE:  LDAJ

Cf:  JCABB

RELATIONS WITH LAW ENFORCEMENT AUTHORITIES

It is the policy of the Avoyelles Parish School Board to cooperate with law enforcement agencies for the best interest and welfare of all citizens.  Schools have the responsibility to parents for the welfare of the students while they are in the care of the school.  Cooperation with law enforcement agencies is essential for the protection of students, for maintaining a safe environment in the schools, and for safeguarding all school property.

All contact with representatives of law enforcement agencies by school personnel shall be governed by applicable Board policies.

APPREHENSION

The Avoyelles Parish School Board authorizes principals or designees to release minor students into the custody of a law enforcement officer upon presentation of a court order.  The principal or designee will immediately notify the parent/guardian or responsible relative of the student's release and the place to which the student is reportedly taken, except in cases of suspected child abuse.

Whenever a student is suspected of being a victim of child abuse and is being removed from the school premises, the Superintendent or designee must give the telephone number and address of the student's parent/guardian to the law enforcement officer.  The officer then has the responsibility of immediately notifying the parent/guardian.

Personnel responsible for releasing a student from school custody shall exercise extreme diligence to prevent such release to any unauthorized or unidentified person.

ARREST OF A STUDENT AT SCHOOL

The principal should request the officer make his/her arrest at another time and not on the Parish school grounds.  The principal should secure from the arresting officer a copy of the legal process document giving the authority to take the student into legal custody.  If the officer is making an arrest, or taking the student into custody without a document showing legal authority to do so, the principal should secure the officer's signature, badge number, and the employer's agency name on a statement prepared by the principal reciting the time and date, the name of the student and the reason for the arrest.

Regardless of whether or not the officer has a legal process document in his/her possession when the student is taken into custody, the principal should make every effort to inform the student's parents before the arrest is made, or as soon thereafter as possible if the student's parents were unavailable at the time of the arrest and such notification shall be documented.

STUDENT PROBLEMS OCCURRING IN SCHOOLS

At times, there are situations that occur at the local schools that require the assistance of the police department.  When the school summons the police for assistance, the officer or officers will respond immediately and render whatever assistance is required.  If the situation cannot be contained by the police department, the sheriff's office will be notified immediately.

If the student involved has not yet reached his or her seventeenth birthday, the police shall request the assistance of the parish juvenile office located in the sheriff's office and assist until the situation is resolved.  If the student is over seventeen years of age and the school authorities want the student arrested for whatever cause and a warrant is signed, the situation shall be turned over to the District Court for processing.

If school officials do not wish to file charges but want the student removed from the school premises, officials shall contact the parents or guardian requesting the removal of the student.  The student shall then be subject to appropriate disciplinary measures.

Ref:    U.S. Constitution, Amend. IV

U.S. Constitution, Amend. XIV, Sec. 1

La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §§17:416, 17:416.3

Moore v. Student Affairs Committee of Troy State University, 284 F.Supp. 725 (M.D. Ala. 1970)

New Jersey v. T.L.O., 469 U.S. 325, 105 S.Ct. 733

Avoyelles Parish School Board