[Kentucky] S.R. v. Kenton County – U.S. Statement of Interest

On October 2, 2015 the DOJ filed a Statement of Interest in a federal lawsuit on behalf of two students who were seized and handcuffed by a school resource officer (SRO), alleging violations under the Fourth and Fourteenth Amendments and Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The DOJ asserted that the Sheriff’s Office discriminated against children with disabilities, outlining that the Sheriff’s Office’s “policies practices and procedures related to handcuffing children have a discriminatory effect on children with disabilities who are more susceptible to exhibiting behaviors that may cause police officers to handcuff them” and that the SRO “failed to make reasonable modifications necessary to avoid disability discrimination, as required under the ADA.” The DOJ reiterated that “SROs, like all police officers, must respect the constitutional and statutory rights of the citizens they serve. This is particularly critical in the school context, where the impact of a police interaction on a child can last a lifetime.”