Questioning and Apprehension by Law Enforcement

San Francisco Unified School District and County Office of Education

Administrative Regulation 5145.11

Questioning and Apprehension by Law Enforcement

This Administrative Regulation applies to the San Francisco Unified School District and the County Office of Education. To the extent permissible by law, staff shall protect children from witnessing or being subject to engagement with federal, state or local law enforcement on school grounds. This regulation provides guidance on how to implement such protections.

1. REQUESTING POLICE ASSISTANCE
    
   1. Criteria for Requesting Police Assistance

      Police involvement should not be requested in a situation that can be safely and appropriately handled by the District’s internal disciplinary procedures. (SFUSD Board Resolution No. 92-23A6, “Collaborating with the Community to Ensure Safe Schools,” adopted June 22, 1999.) Site administrators shall only request police assistance when:
       

      1. It is necessary to protect the physical safety of students or staff
         Examples: Active attacker situation; gun on campus; sexual assault; terroristic threats; distribution of child pornography; violence causing serious bodily injury
          
      2. It is required by law
         Examples: gun possession at school or on school grounds; drug sales; possession of dirk, dagger, knife with blade longer that 2.5 inches, taser/stun gun, bb gun; attack; assault or physical threat of a school employee; possession of an explosive. (CA Education Code 48902, 44014, CA Penal Code 626.9, 626.10)
          
      3. It is appropriate to address criminal behavior of persons other than students.
         Examples: unknown person attempting to abduct a child or taking photos or videos of students; person enters school grounds without authorization and refuses to leave (trespassing); adult engaging in threatening or harassing conduct toward students or staff on campus or at school sponsored event.

(BOE Resolution No. 92-23A6.)

2. Evidence Collection

   Site administrators should not request officers to collect evidence for school disciplinary issues unless the employee believes that such an investigation would pose a danger to themselves or others. (BOE Resolution No. 92-23A6.) For example, school administrators may ask officers to assist with search and removal of explosives, firearms or of child pornography that cannot be viewed or collected by school staff.
    

3. Procedure for Contacting Police
    
   1. Call 911 in an emergency or crisis situation and notify the site administrator as soon as possible.
   2. If there is no immediate danger to students or others, a staff member should always contact a site administrator to make the decision about whether to request police assistance for an incident involving potentially criminal behavior by a student, based on criteria in Section A above.
   3. The site administrator shall notify the Assistant Superintendent and enter a written incident report the same day to detail police response to an incident involving a student and as required by District policy. (BOE Resolution No. 92-23A6.)

4. Data Collection

   Written incident reports shall be logged into Synergy and data regarding such incidents and calls for police assistance shall be provided in aggregate form. Data may be further disaggregated by criteria such as school-site, race, ethnicity, gender, and age of the student or students involved in the incident for which the police contact was initiated, as long as the disaggregation does not reveal individualized information to the general public or relevant school community. Use of police intervention in situations that should have been identified as student disciplinary issues shall be cause for corrective action by the District. (BOE Resolution No. 92-23A6.)
    

5. School Activities and Events

   District funds shall not be used to contract with law enforcement officers to provide security for school related activities or events including but not limited to dances, performances, or sporting events.

2. POLICE INTERVIEWS ON SCHOOL CAMPUS

   When investigating a possible criminal violation occurring off school premises or not part of a school program, the principal or designee shall request that law enforcement agencies interview students away from school premises. To the extent practicable, law enforcement interviews of school staff regarding school incidents under criminal investigation should be scheduled for before or after school to minimize disruption to the education environment.
    

   1. Officer Must Show Identification and Fill Out Form to Verify Legal Authority for Interview

      The officer shall be required to provide their identification and verify the legal authority under which the interview is to be conducted: a warrant, court order, parent/guardian consent or exigent circumstances. The principal or designee shall maintain a record of all documentation relative to law enforcement interviews of students which includes ensuring that law enforcement completes the “Form for Law Enforcement Officers Interview of Student at School.” (Board Policy 5145.11)
       

   2. Provide Private and Non-disruptive Location for Interview

      If the law enforcement officer has a warrant, court order, parent/guardian consent, or exigent circumstances exist, the principal or designee shall accommodate the interview in a way that causes the least possible disruption to the school process, gives the student appropriate privacy, models cooperation with local law enforcement agencies, and respects the interests of students, parents and the school community. (Board Policy 5145.11)
       

   3. Contact Parent/Guardian and Give Them Opportunity to Attend the Interview

      Except in situations where the student is a suspected victim of child abuse, the school must immediately call the student’s parents. Efforts to contact parents must include calling all numbers listed on an emergency card, including work numbers, pager numbers, and any number supplied by the student. Assuming the cell phone is not confiscated as evidence by law enforcement, or absent any potential destruction of evidence, or other official police direction; under direct supervision, site administrators and/or law enforcement may also allow students to use their personal cellular devices to contact their parents/guardians.

      Parents must be given reasonable opportunity to come to the school and be present for any police interview. (Board Policy 5145.11.) If law enforcement officers refuse to wait for a parent’s arrival for the interview, the principal should contact the legal office. The principal or designee should document any explanation provided by the law enforcement officers to support the need to obtain access prior to a parent/guardian’s arrival.
       

   4. Offer Adult Support Person if No Parent/Guardian Can Attend

      If a parent cannot be found, the school site should offer the student the option of having an adult of his or her choice from the school available during an interview. (Board Policy 5145.11.)
       

   5. Notify Parent As Soon As Practicable if Parent is Inaccessible Prior to Interview

      In cases where the principal or designee is unable to contact the student’s parent/guardian before the interview begins, the principal or designee shall notify the parent/guardian as soon as practicable after the law enforcement officer has interviewed the student on school premises. (Board Policy 5145.11.)
       

   6. Police Must Provide Student With Opportunity to Consult with Public Defender

      State law requires that prior to a custodial interrogation, and before the waiver of any Miranda rights, a student 15 years of age or younger shall consult with legal counsel in person, by telephone, or by video conference. The consultation may not be waived. Welfare & Institutions Code Section 625.6. San Francisco Ordinance requires the San Francisco Police Department to extend this mandate to youths who are 16 or 17 years old, and to allow a Responsible Adult to be present for the custodial interrogation. San Francisco Administrative Code Section 96C.1-96C.5.

      The San Francisco Public Defender’s Office has made a 24 hour phone line, staffed by qualified and trained legal defenders, available to all students age 17 and younger to receive legal consultation prior to a police interrogation or decision to waive the individual’s Miranda Rights.
       

3. ARRESTS ON SCHOOL CAMPUS
    
   1. Reasonableness Determination by Police

      In an effort to minimize disruption to the learning environment, the District expects that law enforcement officers will consider the reasonableness of making an arrest on campus or summoning a student from a classroom. When considering whether it is reasonable to arrest or summon a student on campus, the officer should consider the following:
      ​​​​​​

      1. Whether the arrest or summoning is in response to the commission of a school-related offense (i.e., if the arrest is for conduct that occurred outside of school, this factor would weigh in favor of making the arrest away from school grounds);
      2. The seriousness of the offense (i.e., if the offense if a misdemeanor or does not present immediate danger to the school community, this factor would weigh in favor of making the arrest away from school grounds);
      3. Whether there is an imminent threat to public safety (i.e., if there is an immediate threat to public safety, this factor would weigh in favor of making the arrest on school grounds);
      4. Federal, state and local requirements (i.e., if the law does not require immediate arrest, this factor would weigh in favor of making the arrest away from school grounds); and
      5. Whether the officer is able to accomplish the arrest by other means (i.e., if the officer can make the arrest at another location, this factor would weigh in favor of making the arrest away from school grounds).

If the arrest is not reasonable given the considerations listed above, the arrest or summons of the student should be made at another time/place. The principal shall defer to the officer’s determination regarding reasonableness of arrest, as the school administration will not have access to the information supporting the officer’s determination.

2. Location of Arrest

   To the extent practicable, the site administrator shall ask that the law enforcement officer use a private location out of sight and sound of other students for the arrest that will help avoid invasion of the student’s privacy, jeopardizing the safety and welfare of other students, and further disruption on the school campus.
    

3. Removal From Campus

   The site administrator shall request that law enforcement officers take into consideration the student’s right to privacy when being escorted off campus. The administrator shall request that students who are arrested on campus and escorted off by law enforcement officers be free from the public’s view and/or that reasonable attempts are taken to conceal the student’s (juvenile’s) identity.
    

4. Notice to Parent After Arrest

   Education Code Section 48906 requires that a school official make immediate parental/guardian notification upon arrest of a student, except when the child is taken into protective custody as a suspected victim of child abuse or pursuant to Section 305 of the Welfare & Institutions Code.

   The site administrator or designee shall request the address where the student will be taken, and obtain the officer’s contact information to provide to the parent.
    

5. Training

   Staff shall annually review these protocols at the beginning of each school year.

Please note that compare references, or “cf”, refer to CSBA model policies and do not necessarily indicate that the San Francisco Unified School District has adopted the referenced policy.