New MOU with Worcester Co. schools, law enforcement prioritizes safety, say officials

WORCESTER COUNTY, Md. – Next week, Worcester County Public Schools (WCPS) students return to class. And, safety is top of mind across each campus.

New MOU Agreed Upon

WCPS and the Worcester County Sheriff’s Office (WCSO) have agreed on clearer guidelines on situations involving law enforcement, in a new memorandum of understanding (MOU).

“We’ve had an MOU; sort of a guiding understanding along the way. Things have changed over the past 20 years,” said Dr. Annette Wallace, WCPS Assistant Superintendent and Chief Academic and Safety Officer for grades 9-12. “I think communication and clarity is very important. Sometimes, when you have a document that doesn’t have that much information in it, it can be a good thing. But, then sometimes, it can also create additional challenges.”

“The number one goal is school safety.”

Several months ago, WCPS and the WCSO began work on drafting a new MOU. Worcester County Sheriff Matt Crisafulli says the work comes on the heels of changes to the statewide juvenile justice system.

“Of course, the number one goal is school safety. I, along with the executives of Worcester County Public Schools, our main mission is to keep our kids safe,” said Sheriff Crisafulli. “We have to make sure that we’re mitigating internal threats that could lead to extreme, violent behavior.”

New Guidelines

The WCSO’s new guidelines agreed upon in the MOU lay out the following procedures for students accused of violent and criminal behavior:

• Children under the age of ten are not criminally responsible for their actions. They will be referred to behavioral resources.
• Children aged ten to 12 are only criminally responsible for crimes of violence, and/or firearm related offenses.
• Children aged 13 to 17 can be criminally charged for crimes of violence, and/or firearm related offenses, as well as certain misdemeanors. (Threats of mass violence, threats of arson, violation of protective orders, etc.)

“It’s crimes of violence that there will be a custodial arrest. And, when I say custodial arrest, they are taken out of the school, and they are processed,” said Sheriff Crisafulli. “When they’re processed, we contact juvenile justice, and they make a determination on if that minor is going to be held, or if they are going to be released to a responsible adult.”

Once that determination is made, Sheriff Crisafulli says juvenile justice will decide whether to handle the offense informally, with counseling or reprimands; or, they can file petition with state’s attorney for the case to go to adjudication.

“This is all about resources. If there is an outburst by a five-year-old, there’s a reason why; if there’s an outburst by a 15-year-old, there’s a reason why,” Sheriff Crisafulli said. “We want to get to the bottom of what caused that criminal behavior – what caused that outburst.”

Arrests Last Resort, Say School Officials

Dr. Wallace stresses that the changes do not mean students face heightened chances of being placed in handcuffs. “Our school administrators do a wonderful job of handling incidents when they happen in our schools. But, there is the occasional incident where law enforcement can be helpful,” she said.

In fact, Dr. Wallace does not expect the new MOU to cause many changes in day-to-day school life, at all. She says the agreement is really an understanding between both organizations of how each one will handle situations involving violent or criminal student behavior. For example, Dr. Wallace says, custodial arrests are not explicitly mentioned in the MOU; those guidelines are found within the WCSO’s documentation.

“You go in there, and you see what we have, and then these are the options to choose from [in those situations],” said Dr. Wallace. “I fully expect for us to be doing all the things we can do, as a school system, to keep our students safe. And, I have 100% confidence that the sheriff’s office is going to support us… We have a very strong partnership with our sheriff’s office. Worcester County Public Schools takes student safety and staff safety to the utmost importance.”

“Guide, coach, and mentor.”

Before students return to campus, Sheriff Crisafulli strongly encourages parents to have constructive dialogue with their children, to deter them from acting with violent behavior. In other words, he says, it’s about accountability and proactivity.

“We want to guide and steer [students] into being responsible, young adults. Our school deputies, the main focus is still going to be a guide, coach, and mentor. But, they’re also going to be there to potentially be a disciplinarian if there is felonious behavior,” said Sheriff Crisafulli. “We’re not there to handle traditional school issues. The school will continue to handle those issues. But, we will be there, god forbid, in the event of something felonious and very serious.”