What is the Police/School Board Protocol?

•Police/School Board Protocol confirms theworking relationship and appropriateresponses to incidents where policeinvolvement or intervention is requested orrequired in school related incidents.

•In Toronto, includes the 4 publicly-fundedschool boards in partnership with TorontoPolice Service

What are the roles/mandates of the

Police and the Principal?

•Principal continues to hold statutoryresponsibility for the health and welfare ofstudents and members of the schoolcommunity and to maintain proper order anddiscipline in the school

•In exigent circumstances, police will assumeprimary responsibility to ensure school safety

Which occurrences require a police response?

MANDATORY Notification to Police:

• All deaths

•Physical assault causing bodily harm requiringmedical attention

•Sexual assault

•Robbery

•Criminal harassment

•Relationship-based violence

•Possessing a weapon, including possessing afirearm

MANDATORY Notification to Police:•Using a weapon to cause or to threaten bodilyharm to another person

•Trafficking in weapons or illegal drugs

•Possessing an illegal drug

•Hate and/or bias-motivated occurrences

•Gang-related occurrences

•Extortion

•Non-consensual sharing of intimate images (New!!!)

•Bomb threats (New!!!)

Mandatory reporting does NOT mean that police will lay a charge in every situation.

Which occurrences involve discretionary

notification to the police?

DISCRETIONARY Notification to Police:

•Giving alcohol to a minor

•Being under the influence of alcohol or drugs

•Threats of serious physical injury, including threatsmade on social networking sites or through instant

messaging, text messaging, e-mail or other

•Incidents of vandalism

•Trespassing incidents

Can information be shared between the

Police and Principal?

Youth Criminal Justice Act S.125(6)•allows police to share relevant informationabout a student with school principals toensure the safety of staff, students or others

MFIPPA S.32(g)•permits a school board to disclose confidentialinformation to the police to aid in aninvestigation that is intended to result in a lawenforcement proceeding

Ontario Student Record (OSR)•Disclosure of contents to police is onlypermitted in the following situations:Written permission of parents or adultstudentSearch warrant requiring surrender of OSRSubpoena or court-order•When required, the principal will provide policewith a photocopy of requested documents.•Original copies remain in the OSR.

What is the procedure police are to follow when

visiting schools for non-exigent situations?

Officers are required to:•Report to the principal or designate withproper identification, including Badge Number•Explain purpose of the visit•Consider alternatives to limit disruption•Obtain information from the principal about the student regarding any exceptionalities•Contact or make arrangements with the principal to contact parents of students<18•For non-school related incidents, student interviews should occur at the home or local police division

*Where the principal is under investigation, police will contact area superintendent or Human Resources

What is the procedure principals are to follow when they need to

interview students or staff previously interviewed by the police?

•In the event that a principal needs to interviewstudents or staff previously interviewed by police inrelation to the same incident, principal willdiscuss her/his intention to interview withpolice to ensure that police investigation or futurecourt proceedings are not compromised by theprincipal’s questioning of individuals

• Principals may be able to proceed with a concurrent school investigation when given clearance by police to do so

Are there situations where principals may be directed

by police not to interview students or staff?

•There will be times when a concurrentinvestigation may compromise the criminalproceedings through the judicial system

•Police may direct a principal NOT to investigateuntil further notice

•Principals need be to be in contact with theofficer assigned to the case to determine whenhe/she can continue the school investigation

•Time is critical given the time limitations underthe Education Act

•The most common situation involves sexual assault

•Police may direct principals NOT to interviewor re-interview victims, suspects or witnesses.

•This will avoid re-traumatizing victim/witnesses and will maintain the integrity of thepolice investigation in future legal proceedings

•Police can provide an update on the status of their investigation to the principal who can make notes and use this information as part of their school investigation

What happens when police do not provide clearance to

proceed with principal investigation?

Cases where police do not provide clearance to proceed with principal investigation:

• Notify area superintendent, Safe Schools, Christina DeLuca

• Discuss:• possible need for a Police Exclusion given the principal’s inability to

investigate and assess risk to the school community

• criteria for rescinding the Police Exclusion and proceeding with next steps

• Completion of police investigation

• Consultation between police and principal to determine risk to school community

• Completion of Preliminary Principal Investigation

• If Police Exclusion is issued, the principal must ensure that all appropriate documentation is completed and maintained in writing and on the PD Platform

• When the Police Exclusion is rescinded, proceed with appropriate next steps

NOTE: Police Exclusions are not to be confused with Safety Exclusions

Documentation when Police Exclusion is issued:• Copy of the Exclusion Letter showing the reason for the

Exclusion in OSR and uploaded to PD Application

• Documentation of successful two-way contact between the school and parent/adult student

• Documentation of the plan to re-integrate the student back into the system

• Documentation of communication with other parties involved with re-engaging the student (i.e. board staff, agencies, service providers)

• At this time principals must e-mail Mary De Rango and Christina DeLuca the following information:

Student’s name School name

OEN Start and end date of Police Exclusion

NOTE: By December 2016 principal will enter this data directly

onto the PD Application

Do principals and police exercise the

same rights in conducting searches?

•Except in exigent circumstances, policerequire a search warrant to conductsearches of school property•Principals can search student property andschool property assigned to the student (desk,locker) if the principal has reason to believethat the student is in possession of weapon(s)or contraband. •Students, parents and staff need to be informed of the board’s search and seizure policies

• All such incidents should be addressed seriously and with great

sensitivity

• Should a student report to a teaching or non-teaching staff member

that he/she is in possession of an intimate image on a

phone/electronic device, the staff member should not review the

contents of the device (even if the reporting student volunteers to do

so) but must report directly to the principal. This prevents the re-

traumatization of victim(s)/witness(es) and possible embarrassment.

• Once the principal has confirmed that an intimate image is on a

device, the principal will contact police immediately. At no point in

time should the intimate image(s) be copied or sent to others.

Non-Consensual Possession and/or Sharing of Intimate Images

What is the procedure followed by police when

placing a student under arrest?

Police officers must follow legislated procedures when placing a student under arrest, including:

Informing the person that she/he is underarrest, the reason for arrest and the right to counsel

Searching the person

Placing the person in handcuffs using the approved manner

Contacting the parent of students under 18

NOTE: Police have additional duties as defined by law

What is the procedure followed by principals when a

student is removed from the school by police?

•Principal shall promptly notify the parent ofany student removed from school by police,and at least by the end of the school daywhere possible, unless directed not to bypolice

•Principal will not notify the parent/guardian ofstudents 18 years of age and older andstudents 16/17 years of age and havewithdrawn from parental control unlessrequested by the student

What is the procedure followed by principals when

police conduct interviews of students at school?

•Principals must make best effort to contactparents as soon as possible prior to policeinterviewing a student (victim/witness/accused).

Document all efforts.

•If the parent(s) requests that the interview bedelayed until she/he can be present at theschool, police will use discretion in deciding towait for the parent to arrive at school OR, if police

deem appropriate, police will take the student to the police station.

•Where the parent refuses the request for aninterview at the school, police will conduct theinterview off site

•If parent agrees to the interview occurring inher/his absence, then a 3rd party (i.e.principal) must be present forstudents under 18 years of age

What happens when police and CCAS/CAS are

conducting a joint interview?

• A principal stands in loco parentis (in the place of the parent) to his/her students

• When students under 18 are being interviewed at school by police, a parent/guardian, or school principal (acting in loco parentis) must be present

• The requirement to have an adult present (either parent/guardian, or the principal in loco parentis) also applies to cases where police and CAS are conducting a joint interview

• A student aged 12 – 17 can waive the right to have an adult (parent or principal) present only during a joint interview with police and CAS

• If the student waives (with the consent of the principal) the right to have an adult present at the interview, the police and principal must consider the most appropriate location for conducting the interview and ensure student’s rights are respected during the interview.• For greater certainty, where a student 12-17 waives the

right to have an adult present during the interview, the principal must consent to that waiver or no interview will take place at the school

In situations where the principal does not consent to the student waiver (due to lack of student capacity, student personal safety) but the police advise that the interview still must occur on school property due to exigent circumstances, the principal will fulfill the role in loco parentis during the interview whether the student, police, and/or CAS agree to the principal’s presence or not.

What factors must be considered when

preparing for interviews of students by police?

•Determine whether the school is the mostappropriate location for the interview to occur

•If the incident is not school-related and willhave no impact on the school community, thenpolice should not conduct interviews at school

•Evaluate the need for specialized resourceswhere the student is known to have anexceptionality or mental health need(s)

•If the student has a special education need(s),the principal will inform police about theidentified exceptionality(s), includingbehaviour, communication, intellectual,physical, or multiple exceptionalities asrecorded in the student’s IEP.

Are students under the age of 12 also governed

by the Police/School Board Protocol?

•Children under the age of 12 cannot becharged with an offence in the Criminal Code

•For an incident involving a child under 12,police have the authority to take reports,make referrals, conduct interviews andapprehend the student

•Principal should use discretion when decidingto contact police except for Mandatory

Reporting activities.

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