Minnesota police group says school resource officers can return

Willmar Police Officer James Venenga, who serves as a school resource officer, shows fifth-grade students Dalila Mus Gomez, center, and Deqa Shukre how a toy works during a class Sept. 19, 2018, at Kennedy Elementary 歪歪漫画 in Willmar.

By Alex Derosier

September 22, 2023 at 7:29 PM

ST. PAUL 鈥� A group representing Minnesota law enforcement says agencies can resume school resource officer programs after the attorney general clarified a new law governing the use of force in school settings.

Minnesota Police and Peace Officers Association issued new legal guidance to agencies on Friday, Sept. 22, after meeting with Gov. Tim Walz, Attorney General Keith Ellison, and Democratic-Farmer-Labor legislative leaders earlier in the week to discuss their concerns.

More than 40 law enforcement agencies suspended school resource officer programs over concerns that the law would prevent officers from legally using physical force on students outside of situations where there is a risk of death or serious injury.

Agencies and cities that have withdrawn officers include Anoka, Brainerd, the Clay County Sheriff鈥檚 Office, East Grand Forks, Hawley, Moorhead, the Ramsey County Sheriff's Office, St. Cloud, St. Louis County, and Willmar.

For weeks, law enforcement groups and Republicans called for a special session to address the law, which went into effect last month. But, Ellison鈥檚 opinion, which was an update to previous guidance he issued in August, appeared to clear the air for the Peace Officers Association 鈥� at least for now.

鈥淣ow all peace officers, including those SROs or others contracted with a school district, may use reasonable force to effectuate their lawful duties,鈥� said MPPOA general counsel Imran Ali. 鈥淭he new AGO extends 'reasonable force' beyond threats of bodily harm or death.鈥�

Ellison鈥檚 previous guidance addressed the use of force in life-and-death situations but did not assuage the concerns of departments across the state.

The Peace Officers Association noted that while the attorney general鈥檚 updated opinion clears the air, a more permanent fix should happen in the upcoming legislative session. If the matter ends up before a court, a judge could still rule differently from Ellison鈥檚 interpretation.

"We will work with Governor Walz and legislative supporters to bring about a permanent resolution to this issue," guidance from the association said. "However, if this law is unable to be fixed statutorily next session, law enforcement agencies will need to re-evaluate their relationships with school districts and their SRO programs in the long-term."

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New language now in effect bans any 鈥渆mployee or agent of a district, including a school resource officer, security personnel, or police officer contracted with a district鈥� from using 鈥渁ny form of physical holding that restricts or impairs a pupil's ability to breathe; restricts or impairs a pupil's ability to communicate distress; places pressure or weight on a pupil's head, throat, neck, chest, lungs, sternum, diaphragm, back, or abdomen; or results in straddling a pupil's torso.鈥�

With the new language, law enforcement groups said they were concerned officers wouldn鈥檛 be able to restrain students who are damaging property or causing disturbances but aren鈥檛 necessarily posing a serious danger to others. They pointed to a change in a "reasonable force" standard language change, which they say narrows the use of force to life-and-death situations.

Walz said he鈥檚 committed to permanently addressing the issue when lawmakers return to the capitol in February. Senate Majority Leader Kari Dziedzic, DFL-Minneapolis, and House Speaker Melissa Hortman, DFL-Brooklyn Park, pledged to hold hearings on the issue in the first two weeks of the next session.

It wasn鈥檛 immediately clear on Friday what agencies planned to do in response to the new guidance from the state peace officers association. Agencies reached by Forum News Service on Friday afternoon did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Meanwhile, despite the new guidance from the peace officers association, Republican legislative leaders said they remained unconvinced that the issue had been resolved.

"The updated guidance from MPPOA made clear that the only way to permanently address this issue is a legislative fix, which will require bipartisan support whether in a special session or in 2024,鈥� said House Minority Leader Lisa Demuth, a Republican from Cold Spring.

Walz, a Democrat, had initially said he would be open to a special session to address the school resource officers issue. Lawmakers couldn鈥檛 return to the capitol without his action.

But after a group of 44 Democratic-Farmer Labor senators and representatives signed a letter saying they opposed changing the law, Walz said the issue could wait until February, when lawmakers are next scheduled to meet at the capitol in St. Paul.

Follow Alex Derosier on Twitter or email aderosier@forumcomm.com .