Maple Grove removes SRO

[admin]

Contact information:
Maple Grove Police Department
Commander Jon Wetternach

Release date:
September 18, 2023

Maple Grove Police Department suspends it School Resource Officer Program (Maple Grove, M) - Due to the ongoing confusion with the recent changes in state law, the Maple Grove Police Department is suspending its School Resource Officer (SO) program. Our SOs will not be placed inside the Maple Grove or Osseo middle and high schools until further notice. Chief Eric Werner states, "It is become increasingly more difficult for me to ensure our dedicated SOs have clear statutory authority to carry out their responsibilities to keep students, staff, and our school community safe with the recent law change.
Implementing work-arounds for school safety is just not feasible."

The suspension of our SO program remains in place until the law is changed. In the meantime, the Maple Grove Police Department continues to work with Independent School District 279 (ISD279) to provide services to the Maple Grove schools related to safety and security. During the suspension, SOs will be reassigned to the Patrol Division to provide uniform patrol around the Maple Grove school areas and respond to the schools as needed. The changes in state law apply to school resource officers and law enforcement or security personnel who are acting as agents of the schools. The law does not apply to police officers who are not under a school contract.

The Maple Grove Police Department has enjoyed a strong partnership with ISD279 with its successful SRO program for more than 30 years. Unfortunately, the statutory change created conflicts in law and two sets of standards for police officers. Chief Werner says. "It is unreasonable that a hignly trained veteran officer assigned as an SO is now required to stand by and call a patrol officer to perform the duties they have trained for years to perform. The use-of-force in the school environment is extremely low. However, when split second decisions occur, SROs must be able to intervene and de-escalate a situation to keep students and school staff safe." Therefore, a change in the law is needed to provide clarity for our SROs.

Independent School District 279 values its relationships with law enforcement to keep schools safe and welcoming for students and staff. The district is committed to maintaining partnerships with law enforcement and is actively working collaboratively with them to ensure school satety. For both organizations, our first priority is to ensure the safety of students and staff trusted in our care. The district supports a speedy resolution and clarity to the new law that our police department needs to bring SROs back to middle and high schools as part of our school safety program.