T:/shared/Manual-Resource Officer Revised 07-08-08 Willard R-II School District Job Description Position: School Resource Officer/Administrative Supervisor Qualifications: Must hold Missouri Peace Officer Certification. Must have a minimum two (2) years civilian or military police experience/or related field. Must be able to qualify with all weapons assigned to the officer, which meets Willard/Greene County S.O. standards. Must keep updated on all Police related training. Performance Responsibilities: Responds to radio-dispatched calls for service, on Willard School District premises, and City of Willard. Observes, analyzes, and evaluates situations to determine appropriate action. Conducts preliminary and follow-up investigations of all school related crime and accidents, which may include interviewing witnesses, taking statements, drawing diagrams, collecting evidence and any other activities that are associated with investigations. Assist with monitoring of the parking lots during appropriate hours of school. For example: During high traffic times, such as before and after school, lunch times, but not limited to strict hours due to differential times of other Willard Schools. Reports all problems relating to inappropriate student conduct to assistant principal or principal, of the school building he/she would over see at the time of an incident. Function as an information-gathering source for all areas of Law Enforcement and Juvenile Officials. Attend monthly or when available meetings with other SRO s and School Officials to exchange information and ideas. Must wear appropriate dress attire such as a soft uniform, or class uniform or professional plain clothes attire. Follows oral and written instructions. Observes situations analytically and objectively and reports them clearly and completely. Possesses appropriate judgment to react quickly and calmly under stress and when making daily decisions. Serve as a liaison between the Police/Sheriff s Office, School personnel, and parents. Deals effectively and courteously with students, staff, and the general public. May be required to physically restrain or control individuals who become combative or violent while on school property or at school-sponsored events. Communicates effectively both orally and in writing. Exhibits an image as a roll model for students, by maintaining a professional appearance, and training. Conduct classroom activities involving a wide range of topics, including security, crime prevention, drug/alcohol educations, and other related issues. Prepare for and give presentations at facility in-service meetings, educating parents on school base laws.
Standard Operating Procedure & Policies for the Willard School District Police Resource Unit Purpose: To establish a procedure and policy governing the operations of the Willard School Police Resource Unit. This unit shall consist of the School Administration and Police Resource Officers assigned to schools within the Willard School District. Procedure: I. Purpose of the Unit: This unit has been established to provide Police Resource Officers for the Elementary, Intermediate, Middle School and High School programs and activities in the Willard School District. These officers shall provide a variety of educational resources to the school community, ensure a safe and secure environment, maintain supervision and order provide law enforcement information and direction to students, parents, teachers and school personnel in the school district. School Police Resource Officers are not intended to serve as security personnel in the schools, nor are they to enforce school disciplinary policies. II. Philosophy: The school environment is a community unto itself. However, it remains an integral part of the larger community of society in general. Although the members of the school community are younger, the code of conduct in both communities remains the same. School Police Resource Officers will enforce the laws of the State of Missouri in the same unbiased and impartial manner as in the community at large. III. Chain of Command: A. Normal Authority The Willard School Police Resource Unit is assigned by the Superintendent of Schools in the Willard School District. On a daily basis, School Police Resource Officers shall collaborate with school and district administrators on issues which affect the operations of the school and policies of the district. School Police Resource Officers are responsible for their duties as police officers, as expressed and interpreted through the chain of command. The Chain of Command shall be as follows: Willard School Board of Education, Superintendent of Schools, Assistant Superintendent, Building Administrators and Willard Police Resource Officers. B. Emergency and Crisis Authority Ultimately, the building principal is in charge of the students, faculty and staff on school property and at school activities. However, there may be emergency situations where circumstances exist when the School Police Officer takes control of the normal authority, and is in charge of administration of tactical and legal actions. This state of compromised authority shall remain in effect until the emergency situation is over and agreed upon by both the School Police Resource Officer and the school administration. At that time, Normal Authority and chain of command
shall resume. IV. Role of the School Police Resource Officer: The primary mission of the School Police Resource Unit has four purposes: formal instruction and presentations, providing a safe and secure school environment for students and staff, investigation and collection of data regarding violations of school procedures, policies and laws, and consultation and law enforcement. A. Formal Instruction and Presentation 1. Instruction may be in the form of classroom instruction, public educational instruction, or in-service to school staff. Instruction should be made available to these groups on topics such as Missouri laws, legal processes, crime prevention, courts, drug usage or other topics relevant to the educational setting. Whenever possible, school police resource officers shall follow outlines determined by the school principal as they relate to students and the overall school environment. 2. Outlines for each topic offered to teachers and staff shall be maintained and written in the approved format. Lesson plans shall be updated as needed. All outlines and display materials shall present a professional appearance. All public presentations shall be made in the School Police Uniform of the day, or professional business attire. 3. At the beginning of each semester, the School Resource Police shall obtain a list of instruction topics desired from teachers, school departmental chairmen and school administrators. The School Resource Police shall coordinate the desired training and schedule the appropriate presenters. 4. Each time a School Police Resource Officer develops or revises a lesson plan, that officer will forward a copy to the Director of School Police for review and approval, prior to presentation. A copy of the new or revised plan shall remain on file in the office of the principal. 5. Teachers, faculty, and staff will be asked to evaluate the School Police Resource Officers presentations, using an approved evaluation form. Copies of the evaluation forms should be retained by the officers for personal improvement and evaluative purposes. The evaluation forms shall be forwarded to the building principal for an evaluation and review. B. Informal Consultation 1. School Police Resource Officers may provide information to school teachers, school staff and personnel concerning legal issues, as related to the school community. Such issues include, but are not limited to, Missouri Law, Juvenile law, consequences of infractions of the law, various aspects of the criminal justice
C. Enforcement system, availability of legal, educational, and mental health resources within the community and police operations. 2. School Police Resource Officers may consult with school faculty and staff as deemed appropriate and needed concerning issues relating to the school community. 3. Within the limits of Missouri State statutes and other appropriate guidelines, School Police Resource Officers may discuss with school faculty and staff, any student activity, which may directly or non-directly affect the safety and welfare of the school population. 4. The intent of informal counseling shall not preclude the necessity for School Police Resource Officers to complete appropriate school police reports if criminal offense information is gained or developed. 1. School Police Resource Officers shall be the reporting officers for criminal acts that occur when they are on an assigned campus. School police reports will be written as deemed necessary by the Superintendent of Schools and the Building Principal. The Willard School Police shall utilize two types of reports, an Investigative report for all acts of a criminal nature, and a non-criminal report for offense that are school policy violations or acts that are not criminal in nature. Willard school case numbers shall be assigned to all investigative reports. Antidotal data which is in written form will remain in the officers possession and used at the discretion of such officer. 2. When an emergency situation occurs and the School Police Resource Officer not available (within the immediate area), school staff shall call 911 and request that a law enforcement officer be dispatched to the school to take the appropriate action. Law enforcement agencies include: Willard Police Department, the Springfield Police Department, the Greene County Sheriff s Department and/or Highway Patrol. 3. School Police Resource Officers will take appropriate police action to enforce local and state laws on the school campus. All arrests will be made pursuant to current standard operating procedure s regarding juvenile or adult arrest procedures unless otherwise instructed in this Standard Operating Procedure. After any Juvenile is arrested by a School Police Resource Officer, the arresting officers shall immediately contact the Juvenile office with jurisdiction over the juvenile. This is usually determined one of two ways; First, the County of residence of the Juvenile, or Second, where the crime was committed by the Juvenile. If so instructed by the appropriate Juvenile Office, the School Police Resource Officer shall transport the arrested Juvenile to the appropriate Juvenile office. All juveniles transported by School Police Resource Officers shall be
patted down and searched for weapons prior to transport. All arrested juveniles shall be hand-cuffed during transport. If a female Juvenile is taken into custody, the pat down search for weapons shall be conducted by a female member of the school staff. Depending on the level of cooperation by the arrested juvenile, handcuffing of the juvenile should take place out of the view of other students. However, if a juvenile offender is combative and the safety of the School Police Resource officer, or other students or members of school staff is in question, the juvenile shall be handcuffed immediately upon being taken into custody, without regard to the location of the arrest. 4. School Police Resource Officers shall be alert to intelligence information regarding criminal activity involving the school community. This information shall be shared with the appropriate resource (other law enforcement agencies, detectives, investigators, etc.) 5. All School Police Resource Officers shall strive to maintain contact with available resources to ensure they are aware of criminal activity involving the school community. All reports, which involve juvenile activity, shall be copied to the Building Principal for dissemination to the appropriate School Police Resource Officer. V. Student Consultation: A. School Police Resource Officers may advise students and staff on responsibilities and procedures related acts of violence and criminal matters. School Police Resource Officer, in conjunction with school administrators, may utilize informal counseling and mediation to resolve issues between students, and provide process information to victims. The use of mediation or other resolutions may not preclude the need to document the action in a report. School Police Resource Officers are not intended to replace school Guidance Counselors for students seeking assistance. B. School Police Resource Officers may counsel and advise on the law enforcement aspect of a variety of topics. Student confidentiality shall be maintained as appropriate; however police reports shall be filed as required by the Standard Operating Procedure. School Police Resource Officers should work closely with district and school staff to solve problems and are expected to make necessary referrals to support and resource agencies when appropriate. Referrals should be made when the need for professional attention is identified and/or legal assistance is needed beyond the officer s scope. School Police Resource Officers should maintain a current list of referral services and support agencies. VI. Scheduling and Work requirements: School Police Resource Officers shall work under a 9 or 10 month contract, at 220 days, as approved by the Willard School Board of Education. The normal work hours will be determined by the supervising administrator with a flexible schedule in the 40 hour work week. Of the 220 day contract, School Police Resource Officers will work 174 school
days and 20 summer school days with the remainder of 26 days as flexible schedule to provide security at extra-curricular activities, athletics and other events. School Police Resource Officers are expected to be available for duty when students are in attendance and school is in session. Request for leave during the school year must be coordinated with building administrators and approved by the supervisory administrator for each officer. The School Resource Officer shall follow the student schedule with 174 days of attendance. If school is dismissed for inclement weather, holidays or professional staff work days, then the officer does not report for duty. School Police Resource Officers are expected to be at their job assignments, anytime school is in session. Court appearances, required by a subpoena, representing the Willard R-II Schools School District, will be a part of the regular schedule. Mandated training of 16 credited hours will be a part to the regular schedule. Up to 3 hours each quarter will be dedicated to range qualifying. VII. Exercise of Discretion Within School Setting: When possible, the School Police Resource Officer will give consideration to the interests of all concerned parties, including those of school administrators, when determining a course of action in a particular situation. This will in no way interfere with their appropriate exercise of police authority. Arrests, interrogations or interviews with students or other personnel shall be carried out in a manner that is consistent with the officer s best judgment, legal requirements, school policy and guidelines. A. School Discipline 1. Verbal Warning - An informal notification by a School Police Resource Officer to a student about a violation of school rules and/or school policy, the violation of which does not meet the elements of a criminal offense. Information regarding the School Police Resource Officer s verbal warnings will be communicated to the appropriate school administrator for their consideration and/or follow-up actions. 2. School Police Resource Officer has no jurisdiction in most school disciplinary matters which are not criminal in nature. However, the School Police Resource Officer may be asked to assist or enforce such school rules to ensure the orderly operation of the school. School disciplinary matters are those areas addressed by school policy and/or school disciplinary regulations outlined in the student handbook. If a School Police Resource Officer is involved in a non-criminal matter with a student, and school discipline is administered by school staff as a result of that officer s contact, a written Non-Criminal Police Report shall be made by the officer documenting the violation. This report shall not be public and shall not be placed in the student s school file, but shall be maintained in the office or the school district s computer system. The report shall be made for documentation purposes only.
3. When school administrators discuss school disciplinary matters with students or parents, School Police Resource Officers may be requested to preserve and keep the peace. While serving in that capacity, a School Police Resource Officer will not intervene unless a criminal violation is identified or observed. 4. If, while preserving the peace, criminal activity is observed or becomes known to the School Police Resource Officer, appropriate law enforcement action will be taken with the appropriate documentation. 5. School Police Resource Officers may be confronted with situations involving behavior-disorder or otherwise mentally challenged students. Officers will use discretion in their decisions to intervene in these situations. Usually, the behaviordisorder teacher or other school personnel will handle all hands-on interventions with their students. The School Police Resource Officer may be requested to physically intervene by school personnel when the behavior of the student violates the law/and or becomes dangerous to himself or other students or staff. If a School Police Resource Officer is in the immediate area of a conflict and observes a situation that presents an immediate danger of physical harm to any individual, the officer shall immediately intervene with or without a request from school personnel. After the incident is under control, the officer shall complete and file the appropriate reports. B. School Disciplinary Hearing 1. School Discipline Hearings should be separate and independent from Juvenile Court Hearings. School officials should conduct independent inquiries regarding school discipline matters and should not rely solely on information gathered by the School Police Resource Officer. School Police Resource Officers may be requested to give rebuttal or clarifying testimony at disciplinary hearing. School Administrators may request that School Police Resource Officers attend the expulsion hearings to provide security for school personnel and to preserve the peace, when indicators are such that students or other attendees may react in a threatening or physical manner. School Police Resource Officers will obtain the permission from the Superintendent of School prior to attending all expulsion hearings. C. Voluntary Student Contacts 1. Voluntary student contacts are those where the School Police Resource Officer contacts students in a non-accusatory, non-confrontational, and non-custodial setting. Examples might include student-initiated, parent-initiated, school administrator initiated, or teacher initiated contact with a School Police Resource Officer. Other examples can include Officer initiated greetings to students, or merely engaging students in general conversations. Voluntary student contacts will also include those previously mentioned informal counseling sessions that are
student initiated and do not involve criminal activity. No parental permission or principal approval is required prior to or during voluntary contacts. 2. School Police Resource Officers are encouraged to conduct voluntary contacts with students and school staff members. If information regarding criminal acts surfaces during these contacts, appropriate police reports and follow-up investigations will be conducted. 3. If student contact escalates at school, on school grounds, or at a school sponsored event to the point the School Police Resource officer is needed, then follow up in the form of interviews, interrogation, or investigations shall be conducted as follows: For juveniles, a person under the age of 17, a school administrator, a parent, and/or juvenile officer shall be contacted prior to the interview. Evidence of such permission will be documented in the officers report; For a student of the age of 17 or older, no parental contact is necessary, as the student is considered a legal adult in the State of Missouri. D. School Incident Reports 1. School incident reports are written reports prepared by school administrators, or school personnel, which documents incidents pursuant to school district policy at the School Administrator s discretion. School Police Resource Officers will not complete school incident reports; however, incident documents which do not rise to the elements of a criminal offense should be maintained. 2. After considering the requirements of the Safe Schools Act, School Administrators may forward School Incident reports to or discuss these reports with the School Police Resource Officer. If School Administrators, pursuant to the Safe Schools Act, or for any other reason, decide to involve the School Police Resource Officer, either verbally or by copying the Incident report to the School Police Resource Officer, the School Police Resource Officer will follow the laws of the State of Missouri regarding the reporting and the investigation of these incidents. E. School Police Reports 1. Willard School Police Investigative Reports are formal police records of events, which document crimes, suspicious activity, or other information beneficial to law enforcement and the law enforcement agency with jurisdiction regarding the alleged criminal activity. Willard School Police Investigative Reports are not part of a student s public school record and are confidential in nature, and are not available to the student or his/or her parents. Willard School Police reports shall only be made available to a student, or parent, only upon written request. The written request for these records shall be in accordance to The Sunshine Law. If the Sunshine Law is not applicable to the requested report, the School Police Report shall only be available at the appropriate law enforcement agency serving that school building. A legal subpoena from a court of law shall be presented to
request a copy of the report. 2. Willard School Police Reports can and shall be forwarded to the law enforcement agency with jurisdiction regarding the criminal offense that was committed. Ex: Willard Police Department reports may also be directly submitted to the Greene Co. Prosecuting Attorney, Greene Co. Sheriff s Department, Greene Co. Juvenile Office, and the Springfield Police Department. 3. Willard School Police reports may be returned to the School Police Resource Officer for additional follow-up investigation by any law enforcement agency or Juvenile Office. 4. All School Police Resource Officers will follow the investigatory guidelines. 5. Pursuant to the Safe Schools Act, Willard School Police report information may be shared with school administrators and staff on a need to know bases, ensuring a safe school environment. 6. Willard School Police reports will document facts and investigative findings. If appropriate, they may also contain the opinions of the School Administrator, the suspect and his/her parents, and the victim and his/her parents. Completing reports should be accomplished prior to the Prosecuting Attorney s review or the Juvenile Office s review for the formal filing of criminal charges, if possible. Should an officer encounter a situation that does not immediately meet all the necessary elements to constitute a crime, a Non-Criminal report will be completed to document the incident. All Non-Criminal reports shall be considered Police Reports and are confidential in nature. Non-Criminal reports shall not be made a part of a student s school record and copies of Non-Criminal reports are only available under the guidelines of the Missouri Sunshine law or by means of subpoena. 7. Physical interventions by a School Police Resource Officer will require the appropriate police reports to be written. The Willard School Police Use of Force policy shall apply in all school setting situations, and shall be strictly followed by all members of the Willard School Police. All incidents shall be reported to the building administrator in a timely fashion. F. Police Interviews and Police Interrogations 1. Police interviews occur when School Police Resource Officers contact a specific individual, with the express purpose to intentionally gather information to further police investigations. These interviews are noncustodial and non- accusatory contacts; however, they are usually conducted out of public view and in an office setting. ( Ex: Contacting witnesses to obtain additional information about a reported criminal
incident or offense.) 2. Police interrogation occurs when a School Police Resource Officer contacts a suspect who is being accused of committing a crime, and is not free to leave the site where the interrogation takes place. In these instances, a Miranda Warning or Juvenile Miranda Warning is required. 3. Interrogations are usually conducted in an office or detention setting, and Miranda Rights or Juvenile Miranda Rights will be given unless there is an exception to the warning requirement. 4. School Police Resource Officers must remain cognizant of Juvenile Law, which specifies an interrogation of those under the age of 17, requires the Juvenile be allowed to consult with a parent or guardian, and possibly have an attorney present prior to any questioning. No School Police Resource Officer shall interrogate a Juvenile about any Felony crime until they contact the appropriate Juvenile Office and request their assistance in the criminal investigation. The School Police Resource Officer can arrest the Juvenile suspect if probable cause for an arrest exists. A Juvenile officer and one or both of the child s natural or legal parents, or guardian must be present at any interrogation regarding a Felony crime. The Juvenile Officer shall issue the Juvenile Miranda Rights or the Adult Certification Juvenile Miranda Rights prior to any questioning of a Juvenile regarding a Felony Crime. These interrogations may or may not be audio and video recorded. School Police Resource Officers can arrest and transport juveniles to the appropriate juvenile detention center, with the approval of the juvenile office. All juveniles arrested and transported to a juvenile detention center, shall be searched for weapons and handcuffed prior to transport, for officer safety. 5. All custodial interrogations require the issuance of the Miranda Warnings. For the purpose of this Protocol, any interrogation of a Willard School student to determine criminal activity shall be done by the School Police Resource Officer and/or Director of School Police and not school staff or school administrators. 6. In incidents, which the School Police Resource Officer has probable cause to believe that a Willard student poses a risk to the welfare of the school community or the general public, the student may be removed from class for the purpose of school police interrogation without parental permission or the approval of the School Principal or their designee. 7. If parents of a student under the age of 16, when contacted, request a delay in the interview and/or interrogation, and every effort will be made to accommodate parental wishes. If the student to be interviewed and/or interrogated is of the age of 17 or older, parental contact or consent is not necessary, as the student is considered an adult under Missouri state law.
G. Assigned Investigations 1. School Police Resource Officers are actual law enforcement officers and will usually be commissioned by the Willard Police Department and the Greene County Sheriff s Department. School Police Resource Officers may confer with the Director of Police or the appropriate law enforcement supervisors to determine the best course of action during a criminal investigation. Willard School administrators can make their desires known to the School Police Resource Officer; however, as law enforcement officers, School Police Resource Officers are controlled by the laws of the state of Missouri and not school Administrators. School Police Resource Officers must follow police procedures and practices, and they are not, and cannot be, required to follow school district policies that are in contrary to law enforcement practices and Mo. State law. 2. School Police Resource Officers may be assigned to conduct follow-up investigation into criminal offenses occurring on school property or involving students. Either Building Principal or Superintendent can make these assignments. When received, School Police Resource Officers will coordinate their investigations through the law enforcement department as necessary. 3. School Police Resource Officers will advise the Building Principal of any preexisting conflicts with suspects, victims, or reporting parties involved in the assigned follow-up investigation. The Principal can have the case and investigation re-assigned if necessary to the Willard Police Department. 4. When School Police Resource Officers contact students as victims, witnesses, or suspects pursuant to these follow-up investigations of non-school incidents, students will be removed from class only with the permission of the school Principal, and a parent will be notified if the student is under the age of 17, before any interview or interrogation. 5. Miranda Warnings or Juvenile Miranda Warnings will be provided when appropriate, as determined the School Police Resource Officer. 6. Every effort will be made to avoid conflict with school schedules, unless the safety of the school environment necessitates an immediate interview and/or arrest. H. Criminal Prosecution of Juveniles 1. The Greene County Juvenile Office, as well as the Willard School Police reports involving juveniles from the respective counties. A final determination as to the filing of criminal or formal charges against a
Juvenile is left to the discretion of the Juvenile office with jurisdiction over the investigation or criminal act, and/or the residency of the juvenile. 2. All recommendations and input provided by victims or their parents, suspects, or their parents, school district officials, and/or the School Police Resource Officer, will be included in the initial School Police report or follow-up School Police report for the Juvenile Office s review. 3. If the crime committed by the Juvenile is a Felony crime, or falls into one of the crime classifications mentioned in the Safe Schools Act, the case and investigation may be referred by the appropriate Juvenile Office, to the County Prosecuting Attorney s Office for the filing of adult criminal charges against the offending juvenile. I. Release of Juvenile Offenders 1. Custodial Arrest occurs when apprehension and detention of a student occurs. Whenever practical, the School Police Resource Officer may release juvenile offenders to their parents or legal guardian, with the approval and consent of the Juvenile Office with jurisdiction in the case. 2. If there is no immediate threat or imminent danger, juvenile offenders may be released upon proof of relationship to parents, legal guardians, brothers and sisters of the age of 17, or older, or other responsible adults as approved by the Juvenile Office. With the approval of the Building Administrator, offenders may also remain in the school. Otherwise, offenders will be transported to the appropriate Juvenile Office or Juvenile Detention Center. 3. Building administrators shall be notified prior to transporting Juveniles from a school facility to a Juvenile office or Juvenile Detention Center. Authorization and notification of the transport should also be received from the appropriate Juvenile Office. In every case, a parent or guardian will be notified by the School Police Resource Officer of the arrest of a Juvenile as soon as practical by the arresting School Police Resource Officer. 4. Emergency incarceration required for the safety of the school environment by the School Police Resource Officer, is valid justification for delays in parental and/or School Administrator notifications of a Juvenile Office placement. J. Child In Need of Care (CINC) 1. School Police Resource Officers may encounter children/students who are not Juvenile offenders, but must be taken into custody for their own well-being.
2. School Police Resource Officers should consider releasing children in need of care to their parents, or legal guardians, if the release can be accomplished and in a timely manner, unless abuse or neglect by the parent or legal guardian is suspected. School Police reports on these matters shall be written and a call (Hotline) made to the Department of Social Services at 1-800-392-3738 as mandated by Missouri State law, for the appropriate follow-up. K. Search & Seizure 1. Laws authorizing school staff and administrators to conduct a search, is a lesser standard than required of the normal patrol Police Officers. However, because the School Police Resource Officers are employed by the Willard R-II School district, this gives the School Police Resource Officers the same rights to search as school staff and administrators. School staff, administrators, and School Police Resource Officers can search with reasonable suspicion. Evidence to support probable cause may not be necessary when operating in school buildings, on school grounds, or at school sponsored events. L. Safe Schools Act 2. When suspect s person is being searched that there shall be a witness present and whenever possible the search will be done by the same gender. The exception to this is if the search must be done immediately when looking for dangerous items or possibly ingested substances and the finding of those items could prevent bodily harm to the subject or others. Thus, when school administrators instruct/request the School Police Resource Officer or if the School Police Resource Officer initiates a search, the standard needed for the Police Resource Officers to search is reasonable suspicion and not Probable Cause. 3. Lawful searches by school officials are allowed. A warrant or probable cause is not required. Legality of the school search depends on the circumstances and their reasonableness. The search and subsequent intrusion must be justified at its inception, and must be reasonable in scope to the circumstances present. 4. Parking Lot Searches and Locker Searches may conducted by Administrators as outlined in the student handbook. A search by the School Police Resource officer requires a reasonable suspicion standard. 5. Items or areas in public places have little if any, expectation of privacy. Canine sniffs or items in these areas do not amount to searches as identified by the Fourth Amendment. A dog s alert of a hit on an item or area which provides probable cause, may for the basis to search that item or area. All Canine searches will be coordinated by School Police Resource Officers and school administrators. Canine searches can and will be conducted at the request of School Administrators.
1. Pursuant to the Safe Schools Act, School Police Resource Officer reports will be completed on any act, which is considered a Felony or Misdemeanor or involves the possession, use, or disposal of explosives, firearms, or other weapons. 2. In the interest of school safety, School Police Resource Officers will share police report information with School Administrators. 3. See policy regarding the Safe Schools Act. VIII. Coordination with School Principals: School Police Resource Officers are expected to and shall develop a practical working relationship with their Principals, Asst. Principals, teachers and staff. This relationship will allow them to establish effective ground rules for handling the normal functions of a School Police Resource Officer within a particular school. School Police Resource Officers should strive for excellent communications with their school administrators. Every effort shall be made to keep all parties apprised of all current issues and problems. IX. Relations with Law Enforcement Personnel: Because of the unique location of their work, it is essential that School Police Resource Officers make a strong effort to communicate effectively with other members of law enforcement departments. In addition to patrol officers and Detectives, School Police Resource Officers should communicate frequently with members of the SOS (Special Operations), Crime Prevention, Traffic Safety, and the Criminal Intelligence Section. School Police Resource Officers should recognize that information may be shared with other law enforcement officers, as needed for safety & security. School Police Resource Officers should also stay current on all crime unit reports from various law enforcement agencies, and keep apprised of the respective law enforcement agencies where the students of the school district reside. X. Conduct of School Police Resource Officers: All members of the Willard School Police Resource are employees if the Willard R-II School District and shall maintain the ethics and standard set forth on the Board of Education policies. Officers shall be courteous, respectful, and civil to the public, students, parents, school staff; and listen to and properly answer all inquiries made of them.
1. Courteous Manner - Be tactful in your duties, control your temper, use the utmost patience and discretion, and do not engage in argumentative dialogue even in the face of strong provocation. Avoid profane, coarse, or imprudent language or gestures. 2. Courteous Demeanor - Develop a fair, impartial, and reasonable attitude and use a manner of speech that does not intentionally antagonize, insult, defame, or degrade any person, race, religion, nationality or culture. 3. Courteous Deportment - Do job tasks in a businesslike manner, keeping statements to the public free from personal opinion, bias, or editorial comment.. 4. Courteous Identification - Promptly and politely give your name, and title when requested unless such action may jeopardize an assignment. Always carry your official identification on your person unless impractical or dangerous to your safety or assignment 5. Loyalty - Be faithful to your oath of office, principles of public service, goals of the Willard School Police Resource Unit, and do not allow personal motives to govern your decisions and conduct in discharging your duties. 6. Integrity - Carefully avoid any conduct that may compromise the integrity of yourself, or fellow employees, or the Willard School Police. 7. Truthfulness - Always speak the truth regarding law enforcement matters, declining comment where law or current investigations forbid you from making comments. 8. Rumor Control - Make every effort to curtail spreading of rumors among the members of the Willard School Police Unit or school staff, by asking for facts or by contacting the Director of Police to get the facts or verify them. Prohibited Conduct A. Non-compliance with Directives - Do not fail, either on or off duty, to follow any of the policy, procedures, or rules and regulations in this SOP, or have induced, or tried to induce, another member of the Willard School Police unit to the same behavior, without justifiable cause for deviation. B. Insubordination - Do not fail, either on or off duty, to obey any proper instruction of a supervisor. Do not induce, or try to induce another member of the School Police Resource unit to this behavior.
C. Unauthorized Use of Alcohol - You shall not be under the influence of alcohol, either when reporting for duty or during duty hours. You shall not drink or be under the influence of alcohol during duty hours or at school functions. You should not be in possession of alcohol except for evidentiary purposes. D. Unauthorized Use of Drugs - You shall not, on or off duty, be under the influence of, or possess illegal drugs. You shall not be in possession of illegal/or legal drugs except for evidentiary purposes. Always be mentally alert and physically able to respond to your duty and responsibility. E. Acceptance of Gratuities, Bribes or Rewards - Do not take for your personal use from another, any gratuity, bribe or reward or other valuable thing during your work or activity. Do not accept a valuable thing when given in expectation of receiving a favor or better treatment than that accorded other persons. F. Abuse of Authority - Do not use, threaten, or try to use any authority of your official capacity, title, or position in the Willard School Police Resource Unit, to do anything, on or off duty that the laws of Missouri or this school district would disallow. G. Unauthorized Use of Force - Do not use excessive or needless force against any person and stop the use of force when it is no longer warranted. H. Harassment - Harassment or Sexual Harassment is illegal. The Willard School Police Unit is committed to providing a work environment that is free from all forms of discrimination, including freedom from sexual harassment. The Willard School Police Unit, along with the Willard School Board of Education will not tolerate actions, words, jokes or verbal comments based upon an individual s sex, race, ethnicity, age, religion, or any other legally protected characteristic. I. Improper Care of Property - Do not be careless, negligent, or unsafe in care, maintenance, or the use of Willard School Police property, vehicles, equipment, or monies. Employees may be required to replace lost or abused school property issued to them. J. Personal Relationships - No member of the Willard School Police Unit shall engage, attempt to engage or pursue in any manner, a personal relationship with a student at any Willard School. A personal relationship shall be considered as follows: boyfriend-girlfriend, dating, any type of sexual contact, marriage, or paramour situation. Unbecoming Conduct Unbecoming conduct is behavior unbecoming of an officer or employee of the Willard School district either on or off duty. Conduct not specifically mentioned here but tending to bring discredit to the Willard School Police Unit or the Willard School District may also be just cause
for disciplinary action or dismissal. Discipline 1. Failure to Obey Laws - Do not fail to obey municipal ordinances, or Missouri state laws or Federal laws. Do not induce, or try to induce any other person to commit an unlawful act; 2. Felony Convictions - No member of the Willard School Police Unit shall have any Felony crime convictions. 3. Law Enforcement Confidentiality - Do not fail to treat official business of the Willard School Police Unit as confidential and do not reveal information contrary to law or the requirements of this SOP. Willard School Resource Police Officers who knowingly violate any provision of this handbook or school policy shall be subject to disciplinary action including but not limited to, verbal counseling, written counseling suspension and or termination. XI: Use of Force: Willard School Police Officers are permitted, with good judgment, to utilize the level of force which is necessary to control a person who is uncooperative, resistant, or combative. Such force shall be used to protect or prevent injury to the subject, other persons, students, school staff and personnel, School Police Resource Officers or property. The School Police Resources Officers shall maintain proper training on the permissible use of force. This level of force used is necessary, and may be required to subdue an individual offender or restore order to a disruptive group or situation. Deadly force may be used to protect the lives and the prevention of great bodily harm of students, school staff and others, the life of the School Police Resource officer, or prevent the escape of a violent felon that poses a significant threat of death or serious physical injury to the officer or others. Deadly force may also be used in other circumstances in accordance with Missouri State law and Federal law when other available measures are insufficient for that purpose. The use of force, personal protection tactics, and restraint equipment are intended to be used only as control measures when necessary. These measures are not intended and will not be used as a means of punishment. Definitions 1. FORCE - means any power, violence, compulsion, or constraint physically exerted by any means upon or against a person or thing. 2. OFFICER PRESENCE - defined as the mere presence at an incident,
physical contact with the participants is not required. 3. VERBAL COMMANDS - defined as clear, distinct audible commands or requests made to the subject for the purpose of directing his or her actions. 4. NON-PAIN COMPLIANCE TECHNIQUES - defined as techniques that would cause the subject to take a particular action through the officers application of soft empty hand control techniques, that have a minimal chance of injury. 5. SOFT EMPTY HAND CONTROL - defined as joint manipulation, leverage, or pressure point techniques. While minor discomfort may occur, the suspect is at a reduced risk of injury. 6. HARD EMPTY HAND CONTROL - defined as striking the subject with any limb of the officers body. 7. OLEORESIN CAPSICUM ( MACE) - defined as the refined oils and wax from the cayenne pepper plant. It is classified as an inflammatory agent that causes extreme burning and the involuntary closing and tearing of the eyes. The level of force is equal to an intermediate weapon. 8. INTERMEDIATE WEAPON - defined as any device that is designed to deliver an impact to any portion of the body, to include the side handle baton both fixed length and collapsible, made of polycarbonate or aluminum, or standard straight baton, or riot baton made of wood, poly carbonate, or aluminum or a collapsible baton, chemical agent, taser, less lethal projectile that are designed to temporarily incapacitate a resistant subject, or any restraining device. Flashlights are not considered as an intermediate weapon except under special circumstances. 9. DEADLY FORCE - Defined as any force which carries a substantial risk that it may cause death or serious physical injury to a person. 10. DEADLY WEAPON - Defined as any instrument, device, or thing capable of inflicting death or serious physical injury, and is designed, possessed, carried, or specially adapted for use as a deadly weapon. LEVELS OF CONTROL NOTE: Willard School Police Resources Officers will carry ONLY those weapons and ammunition that have authorized by the Willard Police Department, the Springfield Police Department or Greene County Sheriffs Office in which the officers have received and completed authorized training and certification for its use. Members may however, use any item available to them in a life threatening situation when authorized firearms, ammunition, or weapons are not immediately available or their use is not practical.
Guidelines for Use of Force: Justification for the use of force shall be based upon Missouri and United States Federal law and the facts known to the School Police Resource officer or perceived by the School Police Resource Officer at the time the action is taken. Facts unknown to the officer can not be considered in later determination of the force justification. A School Police Resource Officer, as any other citizen, is justified in using force in self-defense. But an officer is also justified in being an aggressor when he/she undertakes to make a lawful arrest or to prevent the escape from custody. If the subject being arrested resists, the officer is not only permitted to defend himself/herself, but he/she is under no obligation to retreat or withdraw. He/she is justified in using such non deadly force as he/she reasonably believes is immediately necessary to make the arrest or prevent escape. A officer is not justified in using physical force to make an arrest unless the arrest is lawful or the officer reasonably believes the arrest is lawful based upon probable cause or warrant. An officer should also consider psychological intimidation ( i.e. non-verbal actions, often referred to as body language) such as clinching of the fist, widening of stance, or a blank expression that could warn of an individual s emotional state. In addition to this, a subject s dialogue could also be a reason to utilize a higher level control device such as a taser, OC spray, when confronted with verbal non-compliance. The perception of the threat by the officer at the time he/she utilizes a control measure will be the primary consideration in determining the reasonableness of the level of force utilized. 1. When the level or resistance is verbal non-compliance, or passive resistance which could be the failure to respond, or non-compliance with officers verbal commands, or directives, such as a sit in, the level of control required may be a specific verbal request, order or command, soft empty hand control, with touch pressure such as the use of pressure points, or the use of a chemical agent such as oleoresin capsicum, or the use of an intermediate impact weapon or a lesser level of control. 2. When the level or resistance is defensive resistance, where the subject may push or pull themselves away from the officer, the level of control required may be soft empty hand control, hard empty hand strike and or kick to the nerve motor points, a restraining device such as handcuffs, an intermediate weapon such as OC spray, taser or a lesser level of control. 3. When the level of resistance is an offense assault, such as an assault on an officer or other person, the level of control may be the use of a hard empty hand counter strike, which is a strike with an impact weapon, or intermediate weapon control, such as the use of less lethal munitions, OC spray, taser or a lesser level of control. 4. Deadly Force: When the level of resistance by a subject is an offensive assault with a weapon or anytime there is a risk of serious physical injury or death to an officer or other person, the level of control may be deadly force. The use of deadly force should always be used only when the officer reasonably believes there is no other viable alternative. An officer may us deadly force when he/she reasonably believes that the use of deadly force is immediately