ANNAPOLIS, Md. - In Maryland, a new legislative proposal could change how schools and law enforcement deal with student misconduct. The bill, supported by more than a dozen lawmakers from the Western Shore, aims to prohibit the charging of students for disrupting school activities.
Back in November, a 14-year-old student at Bennett Middle School was charged with assault and "disruption of school operations" after allegedly assaulting someone with a pair of scissors. Under the proposed law, charges for disrupting school activities would not be permissible.
Sheriff Mike Lewis voiced strong opposition to the bill, arguing it would remove critical consequences for misbehavior and undermine law enforcement's ability to maintain order in schools. "This is a slap in the face to Sheriff's Deputies on the line every day," Lewis stated. "I get more injuries to Sheriff's Deputies working in our schools than I do anywhere else," he continued.
A spokesperson for Wicomico County Public Schools says the district is "carefully watching what happens with this bill." Governor Wes Moore also has not taken a definitive stance on the bill, but said legislation that reaches his desk must meet a high bar of accountability. "The answer isn't that lets just find a way to incarcerate every child, we want to make sure that we're educating every child, supporting every child, supporting the families that the children are existing in but there's got to be accountability," he said.
Baltimore County Delegate Sheila Ruth who sponsored the bill argues the "disruption" charge is not being used as intended. "The criminal code is there for criminal offenses. The education code is there to help children succeed in school,"
However, Delegate Carl Anderton from Wicomico County expressed hope that the legislation would fail, saying this is an important tool for law enforcement. "Repeated infractions, there has to be a deterrent, you can't just let people run loose in school while people are trying to learn," Anderton remarked.
The bill has already had a hearing in the House, with the Senate version expected to be next Wednesday.