The Safe Schools Act: Legal and ADR Responses to Violence in Schools

Urban Lawyer

Volumn 31, Issue 2, 1999, Pages 309-328

  Eckland, T Nikki ^a,b  

^a UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI KANSAS CITY   (United States)

^b UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS   (United States)

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EID: 0346499805     PISSN: 00420905     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: None     Document Type: Article

References (166)

1. See Peter Katel, Arkansas Boys Stole Family Guns, USA TODAY, Mar. 26, 1998, at 1A.
2. See When Violence Comes to School, CURRENT HEALTH 2, Apr. 14, 1998, at 1.
3. See Martin Kettle, Girl Dies as Schoolboy Fires on Classmates, THE GUARD" IAN, Dec. 2, 1997, at 13.
4. See Scott Hildebrand, 3 Slain in Mississippi Teen's Rampage 7 Wounded in Shooting at High School, USA TODAY, Oct. 2, 1997, at 3A.
5. Melissa Sickmund et al., Juvenile Offenders and Victims: 1997 Update on Violence - Statistics Summary, National Center for Juvenile Justice, Aug. 1997, at 15.
6. See Gill Enterprises, School Net: School Violence Is a National Epidemic (last modified Spring 1996) 〈http://www.schoolnet.org/spr96_epidemic.html〉.
7. Id. (citing a recent statement by U.S. Education Secretary Richard W. Riley).
8. Id. (citing the most recent data, 1992 statistics, provided by the U.S. Bureau of Justice).
9. S. REP. No. 103-180, at 3 (1993).
10. Fox 4, Six O'clock Evening News (Fox television broadcast, Aug. 11, 1998).
11. S. REP. No. 103-180 at 5 (1993).
12. Id.
13. Id.
14. Safe Schools Act of 1994, 20 U.S.C. § 5961 (1998).
15. Since many of the states' safe schools acts were triggered by the federal government's Act and are modeled after such, using it as a representation of what a safe schools act encompasses is most illustrative. However, it is worthy to note that each individual safe schools act is tailored to meet the needs of that particular state's school violence problem. See, e.g., ARIZ. REV. STAT. ANN. § 15-155 (West 1997); N.Y. EDUC. LAW § 549 (Mckinney 1997); S.C. CODE ANN. § 59-5-65 (Law Co-op 1997); TEX. EDUC. CODE ANN. § 37 (West 1997).
16. Since many of the states' safe schools acts were triggered by the federal government's Act and are modeled after such, using it as a representation of what a safe schools act encompasses is most illustrative. However, it is worthy to note that each individual safe schools act is tailored to meet the needs of that particular state's school violence problem. See, e.g., ARIZ. REV. STAT. ANN. § 15-155 (West 1997); N.Y. EDUC. LAW § 549 (Mckinney 1997); S.C. CODE ANN. § 59-5-65 (Law Co-op 1997); TEX. EDUC. CODE ANN. § 37 (West 1997).
17. Since many of the states' safe schools acts were triggered by the federal government's Act and are modeled after such, using it as a representation of what a safe schools act encompasses is most illustrative. However, it is worthy to note that each individual safe schools act is tailored to meet the needs of that particular state's school violence problem. See, e.g., ARIZ. REV. STAT. ANN. § 15-155 (West 1997); N.Y. EDUC. LAW § 549 (Mckinney 1997); S.C. CODE ANN. § 59-5-65 (Law Co-op 1997); TEX. EDUC. CODE ANN. § 37 (West 1997).
18. Since many of the states' safe schools acts were triggered by the federal government's Act and are modeled after such, using it as a representation of what a safe schools act encompasses is most illustrative. However, it is worthy to note that each individual safe schools act is tailored to meet the needs of that particular state's school violence problem. See, e.g., ARIZ. REV. STAT. ANN. § 15-155 (West 1997); N.Y. EDUC. LAW § 549 (Mckinney 1997); S.C. CODE ANN. § 59-5-65 (Law Co-op 1997); TEX. EDUC. CODE ANN. § 37 (West 1997).
19. See S. REP. No. 103-180 at 5 (1993).
20. Safe Schools Act of 1994, 20 U.S.C. § 5961(b) (1988) (footnote omitted).
21. 20 U.S.C. § 5966.
22. 20 U.S.C. § 5962(a)(1).
23. Gill Enterprises, supra note 6.
24. Creating Safe and Drug-Free Schools: An Action Guide - September 1996, 1 (visited July 10, 1998) 〈http://www.uncg.edu/edu/ericcass/violence/docs/safe/ intro.htm〉 [hereinafter Creating Safe Schools].
25. Id.
26. Safe Schools Act of 1994, 20 U.S.C. § 5964(a) (1998).
27. 20 U.S.C. § 5963(a)(1).
28. 20 U.S.C. § 5963(a)(2).
29. 20 U.S.C. § 5963(b)(1).
30. Creating Safe Schools, supra note 21, at 1.
31. 20 U.S.C. § 5963(b)(2).
32. Creating Safe Schools, supra note 21, at 1.
33. Safe Schools Act of 1994, 20 U.S.C. § 5964(a)(1) (1998).
34. 20 U.S.C. § 5964(a)(2).
35. 20 U.S.C. § 5964(a)(3).
36. Creating Safe Schools, supra note 21, at 1.
37. 20 U.S.C. § 5965(a)(4).
38. Safe Schools Act of 1994, 20 U.S.C. § 5965(a)(13) (1998). However, there is a limitation as to the amount of funds that can be used for activities such as installing metal detectors and hiring security personnel. A maximum of 5 % of the funds received under the Act each fiscal year may be used for activities like installing metal detectors, expanding Drug-and Weapon-Free School Zones, and reimbursing law enforcement officials for their participation in such activities. See also § 5965(b)(1)(A).
39. 20 U.S.C. § 5964(a)(6).
40. Creating Safe Schools, supra note 21, at 1.
41. Id. See also 20 U.S.C. § 5964(a)(9).
42. See 20 U.S.C. § 5964(b).
43. 20 U.S.C. § 5964(b).
44. Creating Safe Schools, supra note 21, at 2.
45. Id.
46. See id.
47. Robert C. Cloud, Federal, State and Local Responses to Public School Violence, 120 WEST'S EDUC. LAW REP. 877 (1997).
48. Id.
49. Id.
50. See, e.g., The Gun-Free Schools Act of 1994, 20 U.S.C. § 8921 (1994).
51. JOHN D. HEWITT & ROBERT M. REGOLI, CRIMINAL JUSTICE 700 (1996).
52. Marcia Johnson, Juvenile Justice, 17 WHITTIER L. REV. 713, 722 (1996).
53. HEWITT, supra note 48, at 710.
54. Hon. Gordon A. Martin, Jr., The Delinquent and the Juvenile Court: Is There Still a Place for Rehabilitation?, 25 CONN. L. REV. 57, 58 (1992).
55. Id. at 59.
56. HEWITT, supra note 48, at 710.
57. Safe Schools Act of 1994, 20 U.S.C. § 5965(a)(3) (1998).
58. 20 U.S.C. § 5965(a)(3).
59. Cloud, supra note 44, at 884. See also Safe Schools Act of 1994.
60. Cloud, supra note 44, at 884.
61. Not necessarily prosecuted in a criminal or juvenile court. See discussion infra at Sections V. and VI.
62. HEWITT, supra note 48, at 701.
63. Id. at 701.
64. Id. However, if the intake officer decides the young offender should remain incarcerated until trial, the offender is usually given a detention hearing within a specified amount of time to determine whether the child should remain in detention. Id. at 703.
65. Id. at 708.
66. Carol Ann Nix, Boot Camp/Shock Incarceration: An Alternative to Prison for Young, Non-Violent Offenders in the United States, 28-APR. PROSECUTOR 15, 15 (1994).
67. HEWITT, supra note 48, at 701.
68. Id. at 701.
69. Id.
70. Id.
71. See Nix, supra note 63, at 15.
72. Id. at 15-16.
73. See id. at 16.
74. Eric Peterson, Juvenile Boot Camps: Lessons Learned (visited July 10, 1998) 〈http://www.ncjrs.org/txtfiles/fs-9636.txt〉.
75. Nix, supra note 63, at 16.
76. Id.
77. Id.
78. Id.
79. Id. (emphasis added).
80. Nix, supra note 63, at 22.
81. Peterson, supra note 71. See also Nix, supra note 63, at 22.
82. Nix, supra note 63, at 22.
83. Id. However, boot camps have only been around for about 15 years. As a result there are no conclusive recidivism statistics available. Id. There is a strong belief that many of the boot camps fail to live up to their expectations. See Alvin Cohn, Juvenile Focus, 61-SEP FED. PROBATION 71 (1997).
84. Tracy Godwin & The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP), A Guide for Implementing Teen Court Programs, Aug. 1996 (visited July 10, 1998) 〈http://www.ncjrs.org/txtfiles/teenfact.txt〉.
85. Kansas City Youth Court: Justice . . . Responsibility . . . A Second Chance Pamphlet [hereinafter Youth Court Pamphlet].
86. Id.
87. Godwin, supra note 81.
88. Youth Court Pamphlet, supra note 82.
89. Id. Most of the participants in the peer programs are young people who have volunteered to help out the less fortunate. A troubled child and his peers work together to solve the problem. A common goal is to use positive peer pressure to guide a troubled youth in the right direction.
90. Youth Court Pamphlet, supra note 82.
91. Godwin, supra note 81.
92. Id.
93. Id.
94. Id.
95. Id.
96. Cloud, supra note 44, at 883.
97. Id.
98. Linda D. Elrod, Restructuring Schools as Families: Report of a Conference, 28 FAM. L.Q. 347, 357 (1994).
99. Id.
100. Id.
101. Id.
102. See Safe Schools Act of 1994, 20 U.S.C. § 5965(a) (1998).
103. See 20 U.S.C. § 5965(b).
104. See 20 U.S.C. § 5965(b).
105. Elrod, supra note 95, at 358.
106. Id.
107. See, e.g., Safe Schools Act of 1994, 20 U.S.C. § 5965(a)(8)(A) (1998).
108. Cloud, supra note 44, at 884.
109. Todd A. Smith, ISBA-Reaching Out to Children in Need, 85 ILL. B.J. 460, 460 (1997).
110. Id.
111. Elrod, supra note 95, at 357.
112. Id.
113. See, e.g., Safe Schools Act of 1994, 20 U.S.C. §§ 5965(a)(4) & (8)(A) (1998).
114. Elrod, supra note 95, at 358.
115. Id.
116. Id.
117. Cloud, supra note 44, at 884.
118. Elrod, supra note 95, at 358.
119. Id.
120. But see discussion infra at Section VII.A.
121. See, e.g., Safe Schools Act of 1997, Mo. REV. STAT. § 167.164 (1996).
122. Stanley Matthew Burgess, Comment, Missouri Safe Schools Act: An Attempt to Ensure a Safe Education Opportunity, 66 UMKC L. REV. 603, 624 (1998).
123. Id. at 625.
124. Id.
125. Id. at 626.
126. Smith, supra note 106, at 460.
127. Id.
128. Elrod, supra note 95, at 348.
129. Id.
130. See, e.g., Safe Schools Act of 1994, 20 U.S.C. § 5965(a)(8) (1998).
131. Elrod, supra note 95, at 359.
132. See generally id. at 354 (explaining the consequences of negative family support).
133. Id.
134. Id. at 354.
135. Id. at 355.
136. See Elrod, supra note 95, at 354.
137. Id.
138. Id. at 359.
139. Id. at 354.
140. Id.
141. The Cleaver household is from the Leave it to Beaver television program. The show consisted of a working father, an at-home mother, and two well-mannered children. The biggest problem this family ever faced was deciding what to have for dinner.
142. Johnson, supra note 49, at 768 (pointing out problems like poverty, low income, parent violence, and a lack of responsive social networks that can lead to troubled homes).
143. Id.
144. See Elrod, supra note 95, at 355.
145. See Johnson, supra note 49, at 771.
146. See Elrod, supra note 95, at 354.
147. See Johnson, supra note 49, at 771-772.
148. See id.
149. See id. at 771.
150. See id.
151. See id. at 772.
152. See Elrod, supra note 95, at 353.
153. Id. at 354.
154. See Johnson, supra note 49, at 770.
155. See id. at 784.
156. See id. at 788.
157. Elrod, supra note 95, at 354.
158. Id. at 356.
159. Id. at 356.
160. Id.
161. Id. at 357.
162. Elrod, supra note 95, at 357.
163. Id.
164. Id. at 361.
165. Id.
166. See, e.g., New Jersey v. T.L.O., 469 U.S. 325 (1985) (holding that school searches do not have to meet the probable cause requirement, but instead must be reasonable under all circumstances).