See your Board’s Police/School Board protocol for the steps to follow to inform parents before the police interview a student.
Police must advise a student under the age of 18 that he/she may request his/her parent/legal guardian to be in attendance during the police interview. The student may identify another family member or other person, or the principal may be present, provided the student so wishes, during an interview held in the school.
Your district school board’s Police/School Board Protocol is the one you must follow. The principal should only perform this role as a last resort in circumstances where the student is a/the possible perpetrator (as opposed to a witness) because the principal stands in a conflict of interest. On the one hand, the principal must act in “locus parentis” in the best interests of the student/child. This could mean asserting the student’s Charter right to remain silent. On the other hand, the principal has a vested interest in acquiring information to resolve the school related issues, if any, and to mete out school discipline as required.
In Boards where a School Liaison Officer is assigned to schools, it is important to know how the Police/Board protocol applies to this individual, if at all.
The Provincial Model for a Local Police/School Board Protocol was revised and reissued in the Spring of 2011. Each Board must revise its own police/school board protocol to align with the Provincial model with the goal being that the partners/signatories to the protocol have a clear understanding of the respective roles, procedures, and decision-making authority of both police and school personnel as they relate to school safety. As principal you must be familiar with, operationalize and in-service staff on the board’s police/school protocol and any related policies and procedures.
The board’s protocol must include the following:
- Signatories to the Protocol
- Statement of Principles
- Introduction
- Role and Mandate of Police Services
- Role and Mandate of School Boards
- Definitions/Explanations of Terms
- Occurrences Requiring Police Response
Mandatory Notification of Police
The protocol must include the list of behaviours that require mandatory reporting to police (for students under the age of 12, refer to section 8 below). Note that mandatory police reporting does not mean that police will lay charges in every situation. The incidents listed include those that happen at school, during school-related activities in or outside school, or in other circumstances if the incident has a negative impact on school climate. At a minimum, the police must be notified of the following types of incidents:
- all deaths
- physical assault causing bodily harm requiring medical attention
- sexual assault*
- robbery*
- criminal harassment*
- relationship-based violence*
- possessing a weapon, including possessing a firearm
- using a weapon to cause or to threaten bodily harm to another person
- trafficking* in weapons or in illegal drugs
- possessing an illegal drug
- hate and/or bias-motivated occurrences*
- gang-related occurrences*
- extortion*.
Discretionary Notification of Police
As principal you may exercise your discretion to contact the police in connection with the following types of incidents
- giving alcohol to a minor
- being under the influence of alcohol or illegal drugs
- threats* of serious physical injury, including threats made on social networking sites or through instant messaging, text messaging, email, etc.
- incidents of vandalism and/or
- trespassing.
Principals should consider mitigating and other factors when deciding whether to call the police in these discretionary situations. It is expected that the principal, on a case-by-case basis, will deal with all other school-related occurrences not specified in the protocol.
For students with special education needs, school boards should identify circumstances where a police response is neither necessary nor appropriate. If your local board protocol does not deal with this matter, ask for direction in writing (e.g. by email) from your superintendent.
*Terms that are defined in the glossary of the Provincial Protocol.
Requirements of the Protocol
1. Information Sharing and Disclosure
A number of different statutes deal with information sharing and disclosure. These include federal legislation (the Criminal Code, the Youth Criminal Justice Act) and provincial legislation (the Municipal Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, the Education Act, and the Child, Youth and Family Services Act 2017). In situations where federal and provincial laws are in conflict with each other, the federal law generally takes precedence. However the Child, Youth and Family Services Act 2017is an exception to this rule. The duty to report a child in need of protection takes precedence over any other provincial or federal statute.
2. School Reporting Procedures
The Protocol must also outline the procedures relating to the reporting to police of incidents that involve students, whether as victims or as alleged perpetrators, such as:
- Descriptions of the different types of police contact.
- Procedures that school officials are to follow in reporting incidents to police, such as
- who should call police (e.g. the principal, the principal’s designate, a teacher) and/or
- points of contact (e.g., 911 for emergencies; the general police inquiry phone number in non-emergency situations).
- Procedures for reporting an imminent threat to the safety of students and/or staff (cross-reference the school’s Emergency and Crisis Response Plan).
- The information and support that police will require, upon arrival, from school personnel.
Reporting procedures must also comply with the “duty to report a child in need of protection” provisions under the Child, Youth and Family Services Act 2017.
3. Initial Police Contact
This section of the Protocol must outline the procedures that a police officer who responds to a report of a school-related incident is required to follow. In particular it is important to note that under exigent circumstances, or if the principal is being investigated, the officer is not required to follow these procedures.
The police officer who responds to a report of a school-related incident is responsible for obtaining and thoroughly documenting information on the incident. The officer is normally required to take the following steps
- report to the principal, providing proper identification
- explain the purpose of the visit, and plan with the principal on how to proceed
- consider alternatives that limit the disruption to the school day
- obtain information from the principal about the student (e.g. regarding accommodation needs or barriers to communication) before making contact with the student and
- contact, or make arrangements with the principal to contact, parents of students under the age of 18.
4.School and Police Investigations of Incidents
There must be direction provided when both the principal and the police are investigating the same incident at the same time. In addition, the Protocol must specify procedures for police and principals with respect to legal rights, search and seizure, detainment and arrest, and support for victims. While it is important that the principal not do anything to prejudice the police investigation, it is also important that the police recognize and respect the principal’s obligations under the Education Act.
5. Police Interviews of Students
Develop procedures to be followed, except in exigent circumstances, when the police interview students on school premises. Include general procedures, as well as procedures related specifically to notification of parents, preparation for interviews, and conducting of interviews.
6. Reporting of Children Suspected to Be in Need of Protection
Outline the legal requirements and the procedures to be followed in cases where child abuse and/or neglect is suspected, incorporating any relevant protocols that may already exist (e.g. those of the local children’s protection agency like the Children’s Aid Society (CAS) or family services agency (FAS)). Ensure that the protocol, as well as existing school board policies and guidelines, reflect the requirements of section 125 of the Child, Youth and Family Services Act 2017, (“duty to report” child in need of protection). The local CAS should be involved in the development of this section of the protocol, so that a trilateral understanding between the CAS, the police, and the school board can be established.15.
7. Investigations Involving Students with Special Education Needs
Because school administrators have a duty to ensure that all members of the school community are able to work and learn in a safe and positive environment, they are obliged to report incidents to police as mandated by the Protocol. However, in investigations that involve a student known to have special education needs, school personnel and police must take additional considerations into account
- the responsibility of the school to communicate to the police that a student is known to have special education needs or communication difficulties
- the requirement to accommodate the student, especially when interviewing is necessary; every attempt should be made to provide specialized supports/resources, as needed, for the student during an investigation and
- the need to ensure that the student’s parent is contacted as soon as possible, except in exigent circumstances or where the police believe the parent may be implicated in the incident.
In cases involving students with special education needs, the principal should review the student’s Individual Education Plan (IEP) and other relevant student records in order to identify whether further intervention strategies and/or resources are required for the student. These may include the development of and/or revisions to a behaviour management plan or a safety plan.
8. Occurrences Involving Children Under the Age of 12
Where students are under the age of 12, principals, in accordance with the school board’s direction, are expected to use their discretion in applying the rules outlined for mandatory police reporting. Children under 12 cannot be charged with an offence under the Criminal Code, Youth Criminal Justice Act, or the Provincial Offences Act, but police may take reports of incidents allegedly committed by students in this age group and may respond in an appropriate manner. Early intervention for children involved in such incidents is essential, and involving police and parents as early as possible may facilitate the provision of appropriate intervention and support. Of course, the principal is required to consider whether school-based discipline is in order, and the age of the student is merely one factor to consider.
9. School Board Communication Strategy
10. Protocol Review Process
11. School/Police Role in Violence Prevention
12. Physical Safety Issues
13. Risk Assessment Services
14. Emergency Planning and Threats to School Safety
Every school is expected to develop an Emergency and Crisis Response Plan, which must include but is not limited to a lockdown or “hold and secure” plan and procedures following a lockdown or other emergency, in keeping with school board and ministry policies. Teachers, staff, parents, and students should be involved in the development and monitoring of the Emergency and Crisis Response Plan, and the plan should be fully communicated to members of the school community and police services. Mechanisms for sharing the Emergency and Crisis Response Plan with police services should be specified in the protocol. The Provincial Policy for Developing and Maintaining Lockdown Procedures for Elementary and Secondary Schools in Ontario, issued in June 2009 by the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services specifies two mandatory components, as follows:
- All publicly funded school boards in Ontario must establish a lockdown policy to ensure the development and implementation of individual school plans.
- A minimum of two lockdown drills must occur each school year.
The full text of the Provincial Model for a Local Police/School Board Protocol can be found on the Ministry of Education website (www.edu.gov.on.ca).