District Gets Temporary Restraining Order Against Student Deemed Safety Threat

Public schools are required to provide every student with an adequate education. They are also obligated to ensure the safety of all their students.

But what happens when those two duties conflict? That’s the dilemma faced by the staff at , who recently obtained a temporary restraining order against a student with a history of mental health issues, and who is described by District 199’s attorney in a court document as “dangerous and potentially violent.”

The order, signed recently by Dakota County District Judge Michael Mayer, prohibits the student from attending the school, and directs officials to enroll the student—who allegedly hears voices telling him to harm himself and others—in a treatment program pending completion of a special education evaluation and decision on what services are appropriate and where those services should be provided.

A Dakota County court hearing Tuesday morning in Hastings was not open to the public, but according to earlier records, it was intended to consider the request of Simley officials to have the student permanently barred from the school until he is evaluated by special education staff. No ruling on the request was issued during the hearing, according to attorney Atlee Reilly, who represents the student and his mother.

The school district took the unusual action to keep the student out of school, according to documents obtained by Patch before the records were sealed, after the student’s mother refused to place her son in the day-treatment program, even though the school district agreed to pay for it.

Reilly called school district’s handling of the case “shocking” and “very concerning” after Tuesday’s hearing. He believes the district may have violated the child’s special-education rights by removing the boy from school without going through the proper steps, adding that “federal laws protect against what’s happening.” Reilly declined to comment further Tuesday.

Because the student is a minor, Patch is not publishing his name, age or address or information that would identify his mother, or the name of the daytime treatment program to which district officials referred him.

Charles Long, an attorney representing the school district, notified Inver Grove Heights Patch Editor David Henke on Friday, Oct. 14, that in the wake of an inquiry by Patch, he had asked the court to seal the case file—which was still open to the public Thursday, Oct. 13—and that the request had been granted.

Patch is publishing the article because it involves a potential public safety issue. It also raises important questions about the rights and duties of parents, school administrators, safety and health officials and the courts when it comes to educating students and providing a safe environment in which to learn.

“All students hear voices”

The student was hospitalized “at least twice” during the 2010-2011 school year due to mental-health issues, according to a complaint written by Long. In mid-September, the student was admitted to Abbott Hospital because of “voices he was hearing directing him to harm himself or others.”

In late September, a Simley High School counselor was contacted by the student’s psychiatrist, who was “amazed at the severity” of the student’s condition when he was admitted to the hospital, according to the district’s complaint. The psychiatrist said his “working diagnosis” of the student is “bipolar with psychotic features,” and added that he was “unable to make a blanket statement regarding (the student’s) safety and the safety of other students at Simley.”

Later that same day, Simley Principal Gerald Sakala, District Special Services Director Jane Sansgaard and other district officials met with the student and his mother to discuss having the student enter day treatment. The student’s mother told the district she was “not interested in that placement,” according to the complaint.

During the same meeting, “school administration asked (the mother) about what (the psychiatrist) had said regarding the voices (heard by the student) and the threats. She refused to give any specifics, instead stating, “All students hear voices.” [The mother] then mentioned a rumor that (her son) had brought a knife to school,” but she refused to elaborate.

After the meeting, District 199 officials proposed a “special education evaluation” of the student to determine whether he meets eligibility criteria for such services. But according to the complaint, the district is barred from proceeding with the evaluation until it has a parent’s written consent. “If the parent refuses permission to evaluate, the School District is precluded by state and federal law from initiating a formal action to override the lack of consent.”

On Sept. 28, a discharge meeting was held at Abbott Hospital. Present at the meeting, according to the district complaint, were the student, his mother, his psychiatrist and school psychologist Danielle Hamsund. During the conversation, the student allegedly admitted bringing a knife to school; when asked why, the boy stated that he was “sick of the kids.”

In early October, according to a separate affidavit filed in the case, Sansgaard spoke with the student’s mother, noting that the district would pay for the student to enter a day-treatment program during the period of evaluation. The district also offered to provide additional home-based educational services after the treatment program ended each day so that the student would continue to progress in his classes.

The mother, however, has not yet agreed to place her son in a day-treatment program, and did not accept the district’s offer of home-based services.

Shortly before the restraining order was issued, according to court documents, the boy’s mother told a district official that her son “would not be going to day treatment,” and also stated that her son would not be returning to Simley.

But the following day she recanted, refusing to confirm her statement that her son would not be returning to Simley, according to the affidavit.

“For the safety of the 1,200 students and staff, it is imperative that [the student] not attend Simley High School while the special education processes are utilized and the team determines a new, appropriate, permanent placement,” the affidavit said. In the meantime, “His presence on campus will undermine order, morale, safety and welfare of students and staff.”

Patch attempted to interview the student's mother, leaving a business card at her home Monday evening. When approached by Patch on Tuesday following a court hearing, the mother directed questions to her attorney, Reilly.

Expert praises district

Ken Trump, a nationally recognized expert in school safety, praised District 199 officials for their proactive approach, noting that the mental health aspect of the case is one that’s often overlooked.

“It’s highly unusual to hear of a school district pursuing a case that far in terms of engaging the legal system in the form of an injunction,” said Trump, president of National School Safety and Security Services in Cleveland. School districts "will call police or family services, but to take it to the next level is much more unusual—but also very commendable.”

Trump said high-profile school violence cases often stem from overlooked mental health disorders.

“We know from the high-profile school shootings over the past decade-plus that, contrary to the often used theory that a lot of them are due to bullying, it’s really an issue of undiagnosed or untreated mental health issues,” he said. “Schools and others in society miss that so much, or they avoid the issue of mental health because it’s just too big an elephant in the living room to tackle.

“Good for [the school district] for sticking to their beliefs to protect not only the other students in the school, but also that student. … It’s an exception, not a rule, and it’s something other schools can learn from.”

Editor's Note: To continue to protect the student’s identity, Patch has turned off the comment function with this story.