The memorandum of understanding was dated April 4 and signed by Montgomery County School Superintendent Monifa McKnight, State’s Attorney John McCarthy, Montgomery County Police Chief Marcus Jones and Chiefs of Rockville, Takoma Park and Gaithersburg police. County Chief Administrative Officer Richard Madaleno and Montgomery County Sheriff Darren Popkin also signed the document.
The public school system in Montgomery County, Maryland, along with prosecutors and law enforcement, has formalized an agreement outlining the relationship between schools and police.
School and police officials will notify the Montgomery County Board of the new memorandum of understanding (MOU) during its meeting on Tuesday afternoon.
“We can’t change it at this point, but we can ask a lot of questions and see where it develops from here,” Montgomery County Council Chairman Gabe Albornoz told reporters during a briefing. Monday briefing.
The new memorandum of understanding was drafted after a debate about how police have operated in county schools in the past. This debate boiled over after footage of police scolding and handcuffing a 5-year-old became public in March 2021. The incident took place in January 2020.
In 2021, Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich said police who operated as school resource officers (SROs) would be removed from schools in the coming year.
Because state law requires “adequate law enforcement coverage” in all schools, the county has expanded its CEO or community law enforcement officer roles. Unlike school resource officers, the new CEOs would not be stationed inside schools, but would be tasked with providing coverage for school buildings.
Concern over rising violence in schools over the past year, including a shooting at Magruder High School in January, has led to calls for police to return to school buildings. Around this time, Superintendent Monifa McKnight said the police would have a new role in schools and insisted that she would not be involved in student discipline.
According to council documents which include a copy of the memorandum of understanding, the new arrangement stipulates that the CEO will have a “designated private office” near the schools’ main office, but “will not be stationed there permanently.” Under the new memorandum of understanding, an officer “may be invited” to attend school events, including career days, assemblies and other staff and student events.
The new arrangement also allows CEOs to view available safety videos related to “critical incidents” in schools. According to the memorandum of understanding, “critical incidents” include cases involving death, rape, robbery, hate crimes, possession of a firearm and gang-related offenses.
In February, less than a month after the Magruder High School shooting, a number of Montgomery County students told the county school board that they wanted better access to mental health services, not a presence. increased policing.
“I think the school system and the MCPD have done their best to incorporate the concerns raised by many,” Albornoz said, adding that the board would be “very interested in the data collection and metrics that are going to be used on the how decisions are going to be made. move forward. »
The memorandum of understanding was dated April 4 and signed by Montgomery County School Superintendent Monifa McKnight, State’s Attorney John McCarthy, Montgomery County Police Chief Marcus Jones and Chiefs of Rockville, Takoma Park and Gaithersburg police. County Chief Administrative Officer Richard Madaleno and Montgomery County Sheriff Darren Popkin also signed the document.
