DeLAND, Fla. – The DeLand Police Department has formally disciplined a school resource officer found to have made insensitive and unprofessional comments last month while tackling, handcuffing and eventually Baker Acting a 12-year-old middle school student who has special needs.
Seen on body-worn camera video, the officer — assigned as the SRO for DeLand Middle School — responded on Sept. 12 to what he described in an incident report as “a student with special needs out of control and attempting to run off campus.” A school employee told the officer in transit that the student wouldn’t comply with school administration and had battered several staff members, the report states.
The video shows the officer rush the student outside near the school’s marquee sign. The student can be seen falling on the ground before the officer’s hands are on him, at which point the officer says, “Roll the (expletive) over,” grabbing the student as the camera falls off of the officer’s person for a time.
The officer claims in the incident report that the student was making statements leading up to this point, such as “I’ll kill you (...) I’ll kill myself,” yet not much else than instances of “I’m sorry” and “Let me go” could be heard between the student’s muffled screams at that time on bodycam.
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The officer walked the student into the school’s SRO office, using a shoulder lock that the officer noted in the report. Once there, the officer mocked the student’s sobbing and told the student that he was going to jail to face several charges, the video shows.
“Principal, principal,” the student could be heard saying.
“You asked for this. You’re with me now. You’re with the police now,” the officer replied. “This is what you wanted, remember?”
The student was taken into protective custody under the Baker Act before being transported to Halifax Behavioral Health, a news release states.
The officer’s supervisor initiated an investigation, during which it was determined that while “the officer followed proper procedures to secure the student to ensure his safety and keep him from running onto the road,” he had also “made insensitive and unprofessional comments to the student contrary to his training,” the release states.
The officer was issued a written reprimand for failing to verbally de-escalate and will be required to be re-trained on de-escalation techniques, according to the police department.
The DeLand Police Department has had positive communication with the mother of the juvenile, and she was assured the officer was reprimanded.
Statement from DeLand Police Department (excerpt)
News 6 spoke with the student’s mother, Danielle Torres, on Wednesday. She said that her son is still staying home and scarred from the interaction.
“He goes to the library, gets books, stays in his room, doesn’t come out anymore and play,” she said. “He’s just a lonely child locked away from the world now.”
Torres said that her son has autism, among other diagnoses. She added that he has an IEP that instructs the school that he should not be put in restraints or handcuffed by law enforcement.
“He was cussing, spitting and biting. That’s part of autism,” she said. “So when all of this takes place, you have to go back to his diagnoses.”
News 6 asked the school district about this, but a spokesperson said that the district cannot legally provide that information.
Torres said that after watching the footage of the incident, she believes more de-escalation training is needed.
Investigators told News 6 that the officer was made aware before this incident that the student has autism.
“I really, really, more than anything wish they would stop cuffing these kids because it traumatizes them even worse,” Torres said.
Meanwhile, the school district provided News 6 with the following statement:
Our partnership with the DeLand Police Department allowed for intervention to handle the situation and prevent serious danger to all involved in the incident, including staff and students. We are committed to continue working with our local law enforcement agencies to ensure the safety and security of our students, staff and campuses. As in this situation, their involvement helps deescalate crises and mitigate risk to students and staff.
Volusia County Schools
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