SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WAND) — Across the U.S. there have been multiple cases of police ticketing students for breaking school rules. A state Senate Democrat hopes to prevent that in Illinois.
The bill would require a police officer to receive extra training to become a school resource officer, which would include training in how to handle students with disabilities. The plan would also ban police from handing out any tickets or citations to students for breaking school rules.
However, students wouldn’t get a free pass on the law. Kids would still be ticketed for breaking laws such as speeding or bringing a weapon on school grounds.
State Sen. Karina Villa (D-West Chicago) said she has worked with law enforcement on the bill to make sure they can still keep kids safe.
"This bill does not prohibit a school administrator from referring a student to law enforcement for any reason," Villa said. "This bill also continues to rely on police discretion to determine if a particular offense constitutes a crime."
The proposal passed out of the Senate education committee on a partisan 8-2 vote. It now heads to the Senate floor where lawmakers could talk about it in the coming weeks.
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