Education Code Regarding Threats

On September 15, 2009, the La Mesa Spring Valley School Board adopted a resolution to use all legal means to defend board members from "threats", based on an email from one member of the public that included a quote from Emerson "If you strike at the King, you must kill the king," also including references to doing a better job of staffing phone banks during the election season. Superintendent Brian Marshall claimed that this resolution was simply an action which reaffirmed existing policy. He provided references to the Education Code sections below, which relate to safety plans for the prevention of campus crime and violence. There was no explicit reference to protecting board members from statements by members of the public, even if those could be classified as "threat".

CAL. PEN. CODE § 422.6 : California Code - Section 422.6

(a)No person, whether or not acting under color of law, shall by force or threat of force, willfully injure, intimidate, interfere with, oppress, or threaten any other person in the free exercise or enjoyment of any right or privilege secured to him or her by the Constitution or laws of this state or by the Constitution or laws of the United States in whole or in part because of one or more of the actual or perceived characteristics of the victim listed in subdivision (a) of Section 422.55. (it continues...)

The passing of this resolution in response to the statement about working to remove a politician from office effectively implies that the text of the "threat" was sufficient to cause the district to utilize all legal means to defend itself, and thus that it was indeed a threat of force. Since the statement was not a threat of force against the official, but a statement about political activities, it is improper for the La Mesa Spring Valley School Board to pass such a resolution as it effectively threatens the writer from his right to participate in the political system and in public meetings.

As provided by Superintendent Marshall:

'> Here are some ed code references that refer to school employee and officer safety.
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'> Ed code -
'> Section 32280 - 32289
'> Section 35294
'> Section 32211
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'> Penal code
'> Section 241.6 00241.006
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'> These sections talk to school safety and the safety of school employees and officers.
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'> Let me know if there is anything else we can help with.

Section 32280

It is the intent of the Legislature that all California public schools, in kindergarten, and grades 1 to 12, inclusive, operated by school districts, in cooperation with local law enforcement agencies, community leaders, parents, pupils, teachers, administrators, and other persons who may be interested in the prevention of campus crime and violence, develop a comprehensive school safety plan that addresses the safety concerns identified through a systematic planning process. For the purposes of this section, law enforcement agencies include local police departments, county sheriffs' offices, school district police or security departments, probation departments, and district attorneys' offices. For purposes of this section, a "safety plan" means a plan to develop strategies aimed at the prevention of, and education about, potential incidents involving crime and violence on the school campus.

32281 -- Development of safety plans

(a) Each school district and county office of education is responsible for the overall development of all comprehensive school safety plans for its schools operating kindergarten or any of grades 1 to 12, inclusive.

(b)(1) Except as provided in subdivision (d) with regard to a small school district, the schoolsite council established pursuant to Section 52012 or 52852 shall write and develop a comprehensive school safety plan relevant to the needs and resources of that particular school.

(2) The schoolsite council may delegate this responsibility to a school safety planning committee made up of the following members:

(A) The principal or the principal's designee.

(B) One teacher who is a representative of the recognized certificated employee organization.

(C) One parent whose child attends the school.

(D) One classified employee who is a representative of the recognized classified employee organization.

(E) Other members, if desired.

(3) The schoolsite council shall consult with a representative from a law enforcement agency in the writing and development of the comprehensive school safety plan.

(4) In the absence of a schoolsite council, the members specified in paragraph (2) shall serve as the school safety planning committee.

(c) Nothing in this article shall limit or take away the authority of school boards as guaranteed under this code.

(d)(1) Subdivision (b) shall not apply to a small school district, as defined in paragraph (2), if the small school district develops a districtwide comprehensive school safety plan that is applicable to each schoolsite.

(2) As used in this article, "small school district" means a school district that has fewer than 2,501 units of average daily attendance at the beginning of each fiscal year.

(e)(1) When a principal or his or her designee verifies through local law enforcement officials that a report has been filed of the occurrence of a violent crime on the schoolsite of an elementary or secondary school at which he or she is the principal, the principal or the principal's designee may send to each pupil's parent or legal guardian and each school employee a written notice of the occurrence and general nature of the crime. If the principal or his or her designee chooses to send the written notice, the Legislature encourages the notice be sent no later than the end of business on the second regular work day after the verification. If, at the time of verification, local law enforcement officials determine that notification of the violent crime would hinder an ongoing investigation, the notification authorized by this subdivision shall be made within a reasonable period of time, to be determined by the local law enforcement agency and the school district. For purposes of this section, an act that is considered a "violent crime" shall meet the definition of Section 67381 and be an act for which a pupil could or would be expelled pursuant to Section 48915.

(2) Nothing in this subdivision shall create any liability in a school district or its employees for complying with paragraph (1).

32282 -- Content of Safety Plan

(a) The comprehensive school safety plan shall include, but not be limited to, both of the following:

(1) Assessing the current status of school crime committed on school campuses and at school-related functions.

(2) Identifying appropriate strategies and programs that will provide or maintain a high level of school safety and address the school's procedures for complying with existing laws related to school safety, which shall include the development of all of the following:

(A) Child abuse reporting procedures consistent with Article 2.5 (commencing with Section 11164) of Title 1 of Part 4 of the Penal Code.

(B) Disaster procedures, routine and emergency, including adaptations for pupils with disabilities in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. Sec. 12101 et seq.). The disaster procedures shall also include, but not be limited to, both of the following:

(i) Establishing an earthquake emergency procedure system in every public school building having an occupant capacity of 50 or more pupils or more than one classroom. A district or county office may work with the Office of Emergency Services and the Seismic Safety Commission to develop and establish the earthquake emergency procedure system. The system shall include, but not be limited to, all of the following:

(I) A school building disaster plan, ready for implementation at any time, for maintaining the safety and care of pupils and staff.

(II) A drop procedure whereby each pupil and staff member takes cover under a table or desk, dropping to his or her knees, with the head protected by the arms, and the back to the windows. A drop procedure practice shall be held at least once each school quarter in elementary schools and at least once a semester in secondary schools.

(III) Protective measures to be taken before, during, and following an earthquake.

(IV) A program to ensure that pupils and both the certificated and classified staff are aware of, and properly trained in, the earthquake emergency procedure system.

(ii) Establishing a procedure to allow a public agency, including the American Red Cross, to use school buildings, grounds, and equipment for mass care and welfare shelters during disasters or other emergencies affecting the public health and welfare. The district or county office shall cooperate with the public agency in furnishing and maintaining the services as the district or county office may deem necessary to meet the needs of the community.

(C) Policies pursuant to subdivision (d) of Section 48915 for pupils who committed an act listed in subdivision (c) of Section 48915 and other school-designated serious acts which would lead to suspension, expulsion, or mandatory expulsion recommendations pursuant to Article 1 (commencing with Section 48900) of Chapter 6 of Part 27.

(D) Procedures to notify teachers of dangerous pupils pursuant to Section 49079.

(E) A discrimination and harassment policy consistent with the prohibition against discrimination contained in Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 200) of Part 1.

(F) The provisions of any schoolwide dress code, pursuant to Section 35183, that prohibits pupils from wearing "gang-related apparel," if the school has adopted that type of a dress code. For those purposes, the comprehensive school safety plan shall define "gang-related apparel." The definition shall be limited to apparel that, if worn or displayed on a school campus, reasonably could be determined to threaten the health and safety of the school environment. Any schoolwide dress code established pursuant to this section and Section 35183 shall be enforced on the school campus and at any school-sponsored activity by the principal of the school or the person designated by the principal. For the purposes of this paragraph, "gang-related apparel" shall not be considered a protected form of speech pursuant to Section 48950.

(G) Procedures for safe ingress and egress of pupils, parents, and school employees to and from school.

(H) A safe and orderly environment conducive to learning at the school.

(I) The rules and procedures on school discipline adopted pursuant to Sections 35291 and 35291.5.

(J) Hate crime reporting procedures pursuant to Chapter 1.2 (commencing with Section 628) of Title 15 of Part 1 of the Penal Code.

(b) It is the intent of the Legislature that schools develop comprehensive school safety plans using existing resources, including the materials and services of the partnership, pursuant to this chapter. It is also the intent of the Legislature that schools use the handbook developed and distributed by the School/Law Enforcement Partnership Program entitled "Safe Schools: A Planning Guide for Action" in conjunction with developing their plan for school safety.

(c) Grants to assist schools in implementing their comprehensive school safety plan shall be made available through the partnership as authorized by Section 32285.

(d) Each schoolsite council or school safety planning committee in developing and updating a comprehensive school safety plan shall, where practical, consult, cooperate, and coordinate with other schoolsite councils or school safety planning committees.

(e) The comprehensive school safety plan may be evaluated and amended, as needed, by the school safety planning committee, but shall be evaluated at least once a year, to ensure that the comprehensive school safety plan is properly implemented. An updated file of all safety-related plans and materials shall be readily available for inspection by the public.

(f) The comprehensive school safety plan, as written and updated by the schoolsite council or school safety planning committee, shall be submitted for approval under subdivision (a) of Section 32288.

32282.5 Disaster Preparedness

(a) The department shall electronically distribute disaster preparedness educational materials and lesson plans that are currently available to school districts and county offices of education.

(b) The department shall ensure that the disaster preparedness materials are available in at least the three most dominant primary languages spoken by English learners in California, according to the language census.

(c) The department shall coordinate with the Office of Emergency Services to make sure that all materials are reviewed and updated annually.

32283 - Workshops for safety and crisis plans

The Department of Justice and the State Department of Education, in accordance with Section 32262, shall contract with one or more professional trainers to coordinate statewide workshops for school districts, county offices of education, and schoolsite personnel, and in particular school principals, to assist them in the development of their respective school safety and crisis response plans. The Department of Justice and the State Department of Education shall work in cooperation with regard to the workshops coordinated and presented pursuant to the contracts. Implementation of this section shall be contingent upon the availability of funds in the annual Budget Act.

32284 - Pesticide release response

The comprehensive school safety plan may also include, at local discretion of the governing board of the school district and using local funds, procedures for responding to the release of a pesticide or other toxic substance from properties located within one-quarter mile of a school. No funds received from the state may be used for this purpose.

32285 - Grants for safety plans

(a) The governing board of a school district, on behalf of one or more schools within the district that have developed a school safety plan, may apply to the Superintendent of Public Instruction for a grant to implement school safety plans. The partnership shall award grants for school safety plans that include, but are not limited to, the following criteria:

(1) Assessment of the recent incidence of crime committed on the school campus.

(2) Identification of appropriate strategies and programs that will provide or maintain a high level of school safety.

(3) Development of an action plan, in conjunction with local law enforcement agencies, for implementing appropriate safety strategies and programs, and determining the fiscal impact of executing the strategies and programs. The action plan shall identify available resources which will provide for implementation of the plan.

(b) The Superintendent of Public Instruction shall award grants pursuant to this section to school districts for the implementation of individual school safety plans in an amount not to exceed five thousand dollars ($5,000) for each school. No grant shall be made unless the school district makes available, for purposes of implementing the school safety plans, an amount of funds equal to the amount of the grant. Grants should be awarded through a competitive process, based upon criteria including, but not limited to, the merit of the proposal and the need for imposing school safety, based on school crime rates.

(c) Any school receiving a grant under this section shall submit to the Superintendent of Public Instruction verified copies of its schoolsite crime report annually for three consecutive years following the receipt of the grant to study the impact of the implementation of the school safety plan on the incidence of crime on the campus of the school.

32286 - Updates to safety plan

(a) Each school shall adopt its comprehensive school safety plan by March 1, 2000, and shall review and update its plan by March 1, every year thereafter. A new school campus that begins offering classes to pupils after March 1, 2001, shall adopt a comprehensive school safety plan within one year of initiating operation, and shall review and update its plan by March 1, every year thereafter.

(b) Commencing in July 2000, and every July thereafter, each school shall report on the status of its school safety plan, including a description of its key elements in the annual school accountability report card prepared pursuant to Sections 33126 and 35256.

32287 - Failure to make reports

If the Superintendent of Public Instruction determines that there has been a willful failure to make any report required by this article, the superintendent shall do both of the following:

(a)Notify the school district or the county office of education in which the willful failure has occurred.

(b)Make an assessment of not more than two thousand dollars ($2,000) against that school district or county office of education. This may be accomplished by deducting an amount equal to the amount of the assessment from the school district's or county office of education's future apportionment.

32288 - Approval of school safety plans by District office.

(a)In order to ensure compliance with this article, each school shall forward its comprehensive school safety plan to the school district or county office of education for approval.

(b)(1)Before adopting its comprehensive school safety plan, the schoolsite council or school safety planning committee shall hold a public meeting at the schoolsite in order to allow members of the public the opportunity to express an opinion about the school safety plan.

(2)The schoolsite council or school safety planning committee shall notify, in writing, the following persons and entities, if available, of the public meeting:

(A)The local mayor.

(B)A representative of the local school employee organization.

(C)A representative of each parent organization at the schoolsite, including the parent teacher association and parent teacher clubs.

(D)A representative of each teacher organization at the schoolsite.

(E)A representative of the student body government.

(F)All persons who have indicated they want to be notified.

(3)The schoolsite council or school safety planning committee is encouraged to notify, in writing, the following persons and entities, if available, of the public meeting:

(A)A representative of the local churches.

(B)Local civic leaders.

(C)Local business organizations.

(c)In order to ensure compliance with this article, each school district or county office of education shall annually notify the State Department of Education by October 15 of any schools that have not complied with Section 32281.

32289 - Safety plan noncompliance complaints

A complaint of noncompliance with the school safety planning requirements of Title IV of the federal No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (20 U.S.C. Sec. 7114 (d)(7)) may be filed with the department under the Uniform Complaint Procedures as set forth in Chapter 5.1 (commencing with Sections 4600) of Title 5 of the California Code of Regulations.

35294.1 Grants for safety plans -- when merited.

35294.1. (a) The governing board of a school district, on behalf of one or more schools within the district that have developed a school safety plan, may apply to the Superintendent of Public Instruction for a grant to implement school safety plans. A grant shall be awarded only for school safety plans that include the following criteria:

(1) Assessment of the recent incidence of crime committed on the school campus.

(2) Identification of appropriate strategies and programs that will provide or maintain a high level of school safety.

(3) Development of an action plan, in conjunction with local law enforcement agencies, for implementing appropriate safety strategies and programs, and determining the fiscal impact of executing the strategies and programs. The action plan shall identify available resources which will provide for implementation of the plan.

(b) The Superintendent of Public Instruction shall award grants pursuant to this section to school districts for the implementation of individual school safety plans in an amount not to exceed fifteen thousand dollars ($15,000) for each school. No grant shall be made unless the school district makes available, for purposes of implementing the school safety plans, an amount of funds equal to the amount of the grant. Grants should be awarded through a competitive process, based upon criteria including, but not limited to, (1) the merit of the proposal and (2) the need for imposing school safety, based on school crime rates.

(c) Any school district receiving a grant under this section shall report to the Superintendent of Public Instruction annually for three consecutive years following the receipt of the grant concerning the impact of the implementation of the school safety plan on the incidence of crime on the campus of the school.

35294.10-35294.15 -- School Safety and Violence Prevention Strategy Program

35294.10. (a) It is the intent of the Legislature that all public schools with any combination of instructional settings from kindergarten to grade 7, inclusive, have access to supplemental resources to establish programs and strategies that promote school safety and emphasize violence prevention among children and youth in the public schools. It is further the intent of the Legislature to fund and coordinate the programs and activities carried out pursuant to the Interagency School Safety Demonstration Act of 1985 (Chapter 2.5 (commencing with Section 32260)), relating to safe school model programs; Article 5 (commencing with Section 32280) of Chapter 2.5 of Part 19, relating to the development of school safety plans; and Article 6 (commencing with Section 32296) of Chapter 2.5 of Part 19, relating to school community policing, in a cooperative and interactive effort to promote school safety and violence prevention in the public schools.

(b) It is further the intent of the Legislature that the Superintendent of Public Instruction and the Attorney General shall utilize available resources to make every effort to coordinate activities and the distribution of resources to maximize their effective and efficient use in establishing and maintaining safe schools.

35294.11. (a) The School Safety and Violence Prevention Strategy Program is hereby established to be administered by the Superintendent of Public Instruction for the purpose of promoting school safety and violence prevention programs among children and youth in the public schools.

(b) The Superintendent of Public Instruction, in conjunction with the Attorney General, shall develop standards and guidelines for evaluating proposals, and shall award grants on a competitive basis, as authorized by this article, to schools and school districts serving any combination of instructional settings from kindergarten to grade 7, inclusive, that meet the following conditions:

(1) The school has developed a school safety plan as required by Article 5 (commencing with Section 32280) of Chapter 2.5 of Part 21.

(2) The school demonstrates its ability to carry out a collaborative and coordinated approach for implementing a comprehensive school safety and violence prevention strategy.

(3) After initial eligibility has been determined, a process of random selection for grants awarded pursuant to this article shall be used that ensure that, at a minimum, all of the following criteria are met:

(A) Schools are selected from the northern, central, and southern areas of the state.

(B) Schools selected represent large, medium, and small sized numbers in their pupil populations.

(C) Schools are selected from urban, suburban, and rural areas.

35294.12. A school or school district that applies for funding pursuant to this article shall submit an application that includes, but is not limited to, all of the following:

(a) A school safety plan required by Article 5 (commencing with Section 32280) of Chapter 2.5 of Part 19.

(b) A school violence prevention strategy for improving and marshaling the resources set forth in the school safety plan to promote school safety and violence prevention programs among children and youth.

35294.13. The Superintendent of Public Instruction shall award grants under this article for one or more of the following purposes:

(a) Providing schools with personnel, including, but not limited to, school counselors, school social workers, school nurses, and school psychologists, who are specially trained in identifying and supporting at-risk children and youth where the applicant demonstrates that appropriate support activities are necessary and would be desirable in addressing identified problems, issues, and needs, including, but not limited to, classes pertaining to anger management and conflict resolution.

(b) Providing effective and accessible oncampus communication devices, where the applicant demonstrates that the use of these devices, beyond everyday, routine matters, is part of the school safety plan developed pursuant to Article 5 (commencing with Section 32280) of Chapter 2.5 of Part 19.

(c) Establishing an in-service training program for all school staff, designed to assist school staff in identifying at-risk children and youth, communicating effectively with those pupils, and appropriately referring those pupils for counseling.

(d) Establishing cooperative arrangements with local law enforcement agencies for appropriate school-community relationships.

(e) Proposals that allow school districts to respond to existing or subsequent research that establishes structural changes in the operation of schools, such as smaller schools or "schools within schools."

(f) Any other proposal that the applicant school or school district designs that demonstrates that the proposal would materially contribute to meeting the goals and objectives of current law in providing for safe schools and preventing violence among children and youth.

35294.14. The Superintendent of Public Instruction and the Attorney General shall cooperatively design an evaluation process for the programs and activities established pursuant to this article and shall report to the Legislature by January 1 of each year, commencing in 2001, any recommendations for modifications to existing law relative to school safety and violence prevention among children and youth.

35294.15. Unless otherwise required by law, the Superintendent of Public Instruction shall establish the rules and regulations for the application process to be utilized by schools and school districts to obtain funds made available by this or any other provision of law or by the annual Budget Act to promote school safety and violence prevention among children and youth. To perform the duties of this article or any of the activities in subdivision (a) of Section 35294.10, up to 5 percent of the total funds appropriated for purposes of this article may be utilized by the Superintendent of Public Instruction for administrative costs.

32210. Disturbances

Any person who willfully disturbs any public school or any public school meeting is guilty of a misdemeanor, and shall be punished by a fine of not more than five hundred dollars ($500).

32211.

(a) Any person who is not a pupil of the public school, a parent or guardian of a pupil of the public school, or an officer or employee of the school district maintaining the public school, or who is not required by his or her employment to be in a public school building or on the grounds of the public school, and who has entered any public school building or the grounds of any public school, during school hours, and who is requested either by the principal of the public school or by the designee of the principal to leave a public school building or public school grounds, shall promptly depart therefrom and shall not return thereto for at least seven days. A request that a person depart from a public school building or public school grounds shall be made by the principal, or the designee of the principal, exclusively on the basis that it appears reasonable to the principal, or the designee of the principal to conclude that the continued presence of the person requested to depart would be disruptive of, or would interfere with, classes or other activities of the public school program.

(b) Any person who fails to leave a public school building or public school grounds promptly upon request of the principal of the public school or the designee of the principal made pursuant to subdivision (a) or who, after leaving a public school building or public school grounds pursuant to a request of the principal of the public school, or the designee of the principal, made pursuant to subdivision (a), returns thereto, except pursuant to subdivision (d), within seven days, is guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be punished pursuant to Section 626.8 of the Penal Code.

(c) Any person who is requested pursuant to subdivision (a) to leave a public school building or school grounds may appeal to the superintendent of the school district in which the public school is located. That appeal shall be made not later than the second succeeding schoolday after the person has departed from the public school building or public school grounds. The superintendent shall, after reviewing the matter with the principal, or the designee of the principal, and the person seeking ingress to the public school during school hours, render his or her decision within 24 hours after the appeal is made, and the decision shall be binding upon both parties. A decision of the superintendent may be appealed by the person seeking ingress to the public school during public school hours to the governing board of the school district in which the public school is located. That appeal shall be made not later than the second succeeding schoolday after the superintendent has rendered his or her decision. The governing board of the school district shall consider and decide the appeal at its next scheduled regular or adjourned regular public meeting, and the decision of the governing board shall be final.

(d) Where the office of the superintendent of the school district or the office of the governing board of the school district is situated in the public school building or on the grounds of the public school from which a person has been requested, pursuant to subdivision (a), to depart, the person may enter the public school building or the grounds of the public school solely for the purpose of, and only to the extent necessary for, personally making, at the office of the superintendent or the office of the governing board, an appeal pursuant to subdivision (c).

(e) The governing board of every school district shall cause to have posted at every entrance to each school and grounds of the district a notice which shall set forth "school hours," which are hereby defined for the purposes of this section as the period commencing one hour before classes begin and one hour after classes end at any school, or as otherwise defined by the governing board of the school district.

(f) For the purposes of subdivision (a), a representative of a school employee organization engaged in activities related to representation, as defined by Section 7104, shall be deemed to be a person required by his or her employment to be in a school building or on the grounds of a school.

(g) Nothing in this section shall be construed as preempting any ordinance of any city, county, or city and county.