Ohio Legislative Service Commission
123rd Senate Bill Analysis
Ohio Legislative Service Commission 123rd Senate Bill Analysis |
· Defines "school safety zone" for purposes of the Criminal Code as consisting of a school, school building, school premises, school activity, or school bus, and retains current definitions in certain sections of the Criminal Code of "school," "school building," "school premises," "school activity," and "school bus."
· Substitutes "school safety zone" for "school," "school building," and "school premises" as a factor in enhancing the penalty for assault committed against a school teacher or administrator or a school bus operator in a school safety zone.
· Adds "school safety zone" to "vicinity of a school" in enhancing the penalty for disorderly conduct committed in a school safety zone.
· Changes and renames the offenses of illegal conveyance or possession of a deadly weapon or dangerous ordnance on school premises, illegal possession of an object indistinguishable from a firearm on school premises, and improperly discharging a firearm at or into a habitation or school to cover the prohibited acts committed in a school safety zone.
· Requires a sentencing court to increase the prison term by two years for a felony offense of violence committed in a school safety zone if the offender also is convicted of or pleads guilty to a specification in the indictment, count in the indictment, or information charging the offense of violence, that it was committed in a school safety zone.
· Requires a school district superintendent to initiate expulsion proceedings against and, subject to extenuating or exonerating evidence discovered at a hearing, expel any pupil who has committed any act that warrants expulsion even if the pupil withdraws from school before the superintendent has held the hearing to expel or has made the decision to expel the pupil.
· Permits districts to expand the one-year firearm-related school expulsion requirement and the permissive board-adopted knife-related expulsion provision to incidents occurring off school property but at an interscholastic competition, extracurricular event, or activities or programs sponsored by or in which the school district is a participant.
· Permits a school district board to adopt a policy authorizing the superintendent to expel for up to one year any pupil who has committed an act that results in serious physical harm to persons or property if that act was committed at school, on other school property, or at an activity or event or program sponsored by or in which the district participates.
· Expands the scope of misconduct in a district's general suspension and expulsion policy to include misconduct by a student that occurs off of property owned or controlled by the district but that is connected to activities or incidents that have occurred on property owned or controlled by that district and misconduct by a student that, regardless of where it occurs, is directed at a district official or employee, or the property of an official or employee.
· Permits a board of education to adopt a policy granting assistant principals and other administrators the authority to suspend a student from school.
· Exempts schools from the current law requirement to provide a student written notice and an opportunity for a hearing prior to suspending a student in the case of an in-school suspension.
· Permits a school district, after offering an opportunity for a hearing, to temporarily deny admittance to any student if the student has been suspended from the school of another Ohio school district and the period of suspension has not expired.
· Eliminates the post-removal notice and hearing requirements for removing a student from extracurricular activities when the student's presence poses a continuing danger to persons or property or an ongoing threat of disruption in such settings and permits such a student to be prohibited from participating in extracurricular activities in accordance with a district's general policy on suspension from extracurricular activities.
· Explicitly permits school districts to grant enforcement authority of a district extracurricular activity policy to personnel employed to direct, supervise, or coach a pupil activity program.
· Requires every board of education to adopt a comprehensive school safety plan for each school building and specifies procedures to follow in preparation of the plan and content requirements, including a protocol for addressing serious threats to safety and for responding to emergency events.
· Directs the Ohio Schools Facilities Commission to consider student and staff safety when reviewing design plans for classroom facility construction projects and to require necessary changes to promote safety; charges the Commission with reviewing and amending any construction and design standards it has adopted with a focus on student and staff safety.
· Provides for a student to lose driving privileges for misconduct that involves a firearm or knife and that violates board policy and results in the student being suspended, expelled, removed, or permanently excluded from school.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
The bill defines "school safety zone" as consisting of a school, school building, school premises, school activity, and school bus (sec. 2901.01(C)(1)). "School," "school building," and "school premises" are defined as in the existing Drug Offense Law (sec. 2901.01(C)(2)). "School" means any school operated by a board of education or for which the State Board of Education prescribes minimum standards under the Minimum Standards for Schools Law, whether or not any instruction, extracurricular activities, or training provided by the school is being conducted at the time a criminal offense is committed. (Sec. 2925.01(Q).)
"School premises" means either: (a) the parcel of real property on which any school is situated, whether or not any instruction, extracurricular activities, or training provided by the school is being conducted on the premises at the time a criminal offense is committed or (b) any other parcel of real property that is owned or leased by a board of education of a school or the governing body of a school for which the State Board of Education prescribes minimum standards under the Minimum Standards for Schools Law and on which some of the instruction, extracurricular activities, or training of the school is conducted, whether or not any instruction, extracurricular activities, or training provided by the school is being conducted on the parcel of real property at the time a criminal offense is committed. (Sec. 2925.01(R).)
"School building" means any building in which any of the instruction, extracurricular activities, or training provided by a school is conducted, whether or not any instruction, extracurricular activities, or training provided by the school is being conducted in the school building at the time a criminal offense is committed. (Sec. 2925.01(S).)
The bill additionally defines "school activity" as any activity held under the auspices of a board of education of a city, local, county, exempted village, joint vocational, or cooperative education school district or the governing body of a school for which the State Board of Education prescribes minimum standards under the existing Minimum Standards for Schools Law. (Sec. 2901.01(C)(3).) (See COMMENT 1.)
In addition, the bill assigns "school bus" the same meaning as in the Traffic Law. (Sec. 2901.01(C)(4).) (See COMMENT 2.)
Assault
The Assault Law prohibits any person from knowingly causing or attempting to cause physical harm to another or to another's unborn or recklessly causing serious physical harm to another or to another's unborn (sec. 2903.13(A) and (B)). Generally, the offense of assault is a misdemeanor of the first degree.
However, an assault is a felony of the fifth degree when the victim is a school teacher, administrator, or bus driver and the offense occurs under any of the following circumstances: "on school premises, in a school building, on a school bus, or while the victim is outside of school premises or a school bus and is i[e]ngaged in duties or official responsibilities associated with the victim's employment or position, . . . including . . . driving, accompanying, or chaperoning students at or on class or field trips, athletic events, or other school extracurricular activities or functions outside of school premises." (Sec. 2903.13(C)(2)(e).)
The bill would replace these current law circumstances for a fifth degree felony assault with the specification that the offense against the school employee must occur in a "school safety zone."
Disorderly conduct
The Disorderly Conduct Law prohibits any person from recklessly causing inconvenience, annoyance, or alarm to another by doing any of specified acts and prohibits any person, while voluntarily intoxicated, from doing any of specified acts (sec. 2917.11(A) and (B)). Except under certain circumstances, disorderly conduct is a minor misdemeanor. Disorderly conduct is a misdemeanor of the fourth degree when the offense is "committed in the vicinity of a school." "Vicinity of a school" generally means on school premises, in a school building, or within 1,000 feet of the boundaries of any school premises (sec. 2925.01(P)).
The bill adds "school safety zone" to "vicinity of a school" as a condition for disorderly conduct to constitute a fourth degree misdemeanor (sec. 2917.11(E) and (F)).
Illegal conveyance or possession of a deadly weapon or dangerous ordnance on school premises
Existing law prohibits any person from: (a) knowingly conveying, or attempting to convey, a deadly weapon or dangerous ordnance "onto school premises, into a school or school building, to a school activity, or onto a school bus" or (b) knowingly possessing a deadly weapon or dangerous ordnance "on school premises, in a school or school building, at a school activity, or on a school bus" (sec. 2923.122(A) and (B)). These prohibitions do not apply to any security officer employed by a school or district during the time that the security officer is on duty or to any other person who has written authorization to convey deadly weapons or dangerous ordnance "onto school premises, into a school or school building, to a school activity, or onto a school bus" or to possess a deadly weapon or dangerous ordnance "on school premises, in a school or school building, at a school activity, or on a school bus."
A violation of these prohibitions is the illegal conveyance or possession of a deadly weapon or dangerous ordnance on school premises, a felony of the fifth degree or, if the offender previously has been convicted of the violation, a felony of the fourth degree. (Sec. 2923.122(A), (B), (D), and (E)(1).)
The bill modifies the elements of the offense by prohibiting any person from: (a) knowingly conveying, or attempting to convey, a deadly weapon or dangerous ordnance into a school safety zone or (b) knowingly possessing a deadly weapon or dangerous ordnance in a school safety zone (sec. 2923.122(A) and (B)).
The bill renames the offense "illegal conveyance or possession of a deadly weapon or dangerous ordnance in a school safety zone" and retains the same penalty for the offense as in existing law (sec. 2923.122(E)(1)).
Illegal possession of an object indistinguishable from a firearm on school premises
Existing law prohibits any person from knowingly possessing an object "on school premises, in a school or school building, at a school activity, or on a school bus" if both (a) the object is indistinguishable from a firearm (see COMMENT 3), whether or not the object is capable of being fired and (b) the person indicates that the person possesses the object and that it is a firearm, or the person knowingly displays or brandishes the object and indicates that it is a firearm.
An "illegal possession of an object indistinguishable from a firearm on school premises," is a misdemeanor of the first degree or, if the offender previously has been convicted of the violation, a felony of the fifth degree. (Sec. 2923.122(C), (D), and (E)(2).) Security personnel and other people with written authorization are exempt from this prohibition as they are exempt from the prohibition against possessing actual firearms.
The bill renames the elements of the offense by prohibiting any person from knowingly possessing an object in a school safety zone. The bill also renames the offense "illegal possession of an object indistinguishable from a firearm in a school safety zone" and retains the same penalty as in existing law. (Sec. 2923.122(C) and (E)(2).)
Improperly discharging a firearm at or into a habitation or school
Existing law prohibits discharging a firearm at or into an occupied structure that is a permanent or temporary habitation of any individual or "a school." A violation of the prohibition is "improperly discharging a firearm at or into a habitation or school," a felony of the second degree. (Sec. 2923.161(A) and (C).)
The bill expands the elements of the offense by prohibiting discharging a firearm at, in, or into a school safety zone. The bill renames the offense "improperly discharging a firearm at or into a habitation or in a school zone" and retains the same penalty as in existing law. (Sec. 2923.161(A) and (C).)
Enhanced penalty for felony offense of violence committed in a school safety zone
The bill requires a court to impose an additional prison term of two years on an offender who is convicted of or pleads guilty to a felony offense of violence (see COMMENT 4) and also is convicted of or pleads guilty to a specification that the offender committed the offense of violence in a school safety zone, or towards a person in a school safety zone. The additional prison term must be served consecutively to and prior to the prison term imposed for the underlying felony. (Sec. 2929.14(J).)
The bill precludes a court from imposing the enhanced sentence described unless the indictment, count in the indictment, or information charging the felony offense of violence specifies that the offender committed the offense of violence in a school safety zone or towards a person in a school safety zone. (Sec. 2941.143.)
Current law provides several mechanisms for the removal of a student from a public school for disciplinary reasons. These include "suspensions" for minor misconduct, "expulsions" for major infractions of the school discipline code, "removal" to prevent immediate threats, and "permanent exclusion" to prevent continued threats. Each district board of education must adopt a policy that specifies the types of misconduct that warrant each type of discipline. The decision to permanently exclude a student from school is made by the state Superintendent of Public Instruction after a hearing, but only upon the recommendation of a district board.
The "COMMENT" section at the end of this analysis contains a discussion of the current mechanisms for removing a student for disciplinary reasons, the due-process requirements for disciplinary actions (COMMENT 6), and the federal "Gun-Free Schools Act of 1994" (COMMENT 5).
The bill
Student must be expelled even if withdrawn from school
The bill requires that a superintendent initiate expulsion proceedings against a pupil who has committed an act that warrants expulsion under the district's expulsion policy even if that student has already withdrawn from school. If after conducting the hearing to expel, the superintendent finds that the student has committed an act warranting expulsion, the superintendent must expel the student for the period of time prescribed in the statute and in the district's policy. However, the bill also provides that any expulsion period imposed on a student who has withdrawn from school must be for the same duration as an expulsion imposed on a similarly-situated student who has not withdrawn from school. (Sec. 3313.66(B)(6).)
Jurisdiction for suspensions and expulsions to include non-school property
The bill expands the scope of a school's jurisdiction over misconduct to include "misconduct by a pupil that occurs off of property owned or controlled by the district but that is connected to activities or incidents that have occurred on property owned or controlled by that district and misconduct by a pupil that, regardless of where it occurs, is directed at a district official or employee, or the property of such official or employee" (sec. 3313.661(A)).
It is unclear whether the student's action must be intentionally directed at a district employee for the non-school property provision to apply. For example, if a student damages four cars at a shopping center, one of which is owned by the district superintendent, it is unclear whether the provision applies only if the student's intent was to damage the superintendent's car, or whether it applies if the damage to all of the cars was a random act and the student did not know one of the cars was the superintendent's.
Limits on the expanded jurisdiction
While the bill extends a district's jurisdiction over a student's misconduct generally to include sites other than school property or school activities (in the case of threats against school officials or misconduct arising out of previous incidents that did occur on school property), the expanded jurisdiction presumably does not include the option to suspend students for longer than ten days or to expel them for longer than 80 days. The current one-year expulsion provisions (for firearm or knife offenses) and the bill's new one-year expulsion provisions for offenses resulting in serious physical harm to persons or property specifically apply only to offenses that actually occur on school-controlled property or, under the bill, at an activity which the district sponsors or in which it is a participant. Accordingly, a student who threatens a teacher with a knife at a shopping center could receive up to 80 days expulsion, due to the bill's provision expanding school jurisdiction over student misconduct to include threats against school officials at any location. If, however, the student threatened the teacher with a knife on school property, the student could be expelled for one year (if the district had adopted a knife policy).
Firearm and knife expulsion expanded to school-event
The bill contains a new option for districts to expel for one year students who bring a firearm or knife to, or possess a firearm or knife at, an interscholastic competition, an extracurricular event, or any other program or activity that is not on school-controlled property but in which the district participates. If a district elects to have a one-year expulsion policy for any of these offenses, the expulsion may extend into the next school year.
The current law one-year expulsion remains mandatory for students who bring firearms onto property controlled by the district.
One-year expulsion for causing serious physical harm to persons or property
(secs. 3313.66(B)(4) and 3313.661(A))
The bill permits a district board of education to adopt a policy authorizing the superintendent to expel for up to one year any student who has committed certain violent acts at school or on other school property or at an interscholastic competition, extracurricular event, or any other program or activity sponsored by the school district or in which the district is a participant. The acts covered are those that would be criminal offenses if committed by an adult and that result in serious physical harm to persons or property. The bill refers to definitions of "serious physical harm to persons" and "serious physical harm to property" in Revised Code sections 2901.01(A)(5) and (A)(6), respectively. R.C. section 2901.01(A)(5) defines "Serious physical harm to persons" as any of the following:
(a) Any mental illness or condition of such gravity as would normally require hospitalization or prolonged psychiatric treatment;
(b) Any physical harm that carries a substantial risk of death;
(c) Any physical harm that involves some permanent incapacity, whether partial or total, or that involves some temporary, substantial incapacity;
(d) Any physical harm that involves some permanent disfigurement, or that involves some temporary, serious disfigurement;
(e) Any physical harm that involves acute pain of such duration as to result in substantial suffering, or that involves any degree of prolonged or intractable pain.
R.C. section 2901.01(A)(6) defines "serious physical harm to property" as any physical harm to property that does either of the following:
(a) Results in substantial loss to the value of the property, or requires a substantial amount of time, effort, or money to repair or replace;
(b) Temporarily prevents the use or enjoyment of the property, or substantially interferes with its use or enjoyment for an extended period of time.
The superintendent may extend the expulsion as necessary into the next school year following the school year during which the incident that gave rise to the expulsion took place. (Sec. 3313.66(B)(4).) A district policy authorizing expulsions under this provision must also permit the superintendent to reduce the expulsion on a "case-by-case basis" (sec. 3313.661(A)). Expulsion under this provision would not require prosecution or conviction for any criminal act.
Other changes to law on suspensions
The bill permits a school district, after offering an opportunity for a hearing, to temporarily deny admittance to any student if the student has been suspended from the school of another Ohio school district and the period of suspension has not expired. The district is permitted to deny admittance to the student until the suspension period set by the other Ohio district expires. (Sec. 3313.66(J)(1)(a).) This provision does not apply to suspensions imposed by out-of-state schools. Current law permits a school district, after offering an opportunity for a hearing, to temporarily deny admittance to any student if the student has been expelled from the schools of another Ohio school district and the period of expulsion has not expired.
The bill also eliminates the current law's post-removal notice and hearing requirements for removing a student from extracurricular activities when the student's presence poses a continuing danger to persons or property or an ongoing threat of disruption in such settings, and instead permits a student to be prohibited from participating in extracurricular activities in accordance with a district's general policy on suspension from extracurricular activities. The statutes do not require the policy to have any specific notice or opportunity for a hearing to be given to the student. In addition, the bill expands the enforcement authority of the policy to include "personnel employed by the district to direct, supervise, or coach a pupil activity program." The bill also changes the policy directive to one of prohibiting a student from participating in such activities rather than suspending them by changing the word "suspend" to "prohibit." (Sec. 3313.664).)
The bill permits a board of education to adopt a policy granting assistant principals and other administrators (not just superintendents and principals as under current law) the authority to suspend a pupil from school for a period of time as specified in the board's policy, not to exceed ten school days. It also specifically exempts schools from the notice and opportunity for a hearing requirements in the case of an in-school suspension. (Sec. 3313.66(A).)
Comprehensive school safety plan
(sec. 3313.536)
The bill requires each school board to adopt a comprehensive school safety plan for each school building under its control. The board is to examine the environmental conditions and operations of each building to determine potential hazards to safety and propose operating changes to promote the prevention of potentially dangerous problems and circumstances. Community law enforcement and safety officials, parents, and teachers and other employees assigned to the building are to be given an opportunity to comment on the plan and offer suggestions. The board is to consider incorporating remediation strategies into the plan for any building where documented safety problems have occurred.
Each board must incorporate into its plan a protocol for addressing serious threats to the safety of school property, students, employees, or administrators and a protocol for responding to any emergency event that occurs and that compromises the safety of school property, students, employees, or administrators. Each protocol must include procedures the board finds appropriate for responding to threats and emergency events, including such things as notification of appropriate law enforcement officials, calling specified emergency response personnel, and informing parents of affected students.
Ohio Schools Facilities Commission to review designs for safety
(sec. 3318.031)
The bill directs the Ohio Schools Facilities Commission to consider student and staff safety when reviewing design plans for state-assisted classroom facility construction projects. After consulting with appropriate education and law enforcement personnel, the Commission may require, as a condition of project approval, changes in the design plans that it believes will advance or improve student and staff safety in the proposed classroom facility.
The Commission must review with a focus on safety, any construction and design standards it uses in the project approval process, including any standards for location and number of exits and location of restrooms. If necessary, the Commission is to amend the standards it uses in the project approval process.
Loss of driver's license
Under current law, a student of compulsory school age will have a temporary instruction permit or driver's license suspended, or the opportunity to obtain such a permit will be denied, for withdrawing from school or, pursuant to district policy, for excessive absences.
The bill requires a superintendent to notify the Registrar and the juvenile judge if a student is suspended, expelled, removed, or permanently excluded from school for misconduct that is included in a policy that the board of education has adopted and that involves a firearm or knife or other weapon as defined in the district policy. The Registrar must suspend the student's temporary instruction permit or driver's license or prohibit the student from obtaining a temporary instruction permit or driver's license. (Secs. 3321.13(B)(4) and 4507.061.)
COMMENT
1. The bill's definition of "school activity" is the same as the definition of "school activity" in existing sec. 2923.122, which sets forth the offenses of illegal conveyance or possession of a deadly weapon or dangerous ordnance on school premises and illegal possession of an object indistinguishable from a firearm on school premises. The bill repeals that definition in sec. 2923.122.
2. Sec. 4511.01 (not in the bill) defines "school bus" as every bus designed for carrying more than nine passengers which is owned by a public, private, or governmental agency or institution of learning and operated for the transportation of children to or from a school session or a school function, or owned by a private person and operated for compensation for the transportation of children to or from a school session or a school function. "School bus" does not include a bus operated by a municipally owned transportation system, a mass transit company operating exclusively within the territorial limits of a municipal corporation, or within those limits and the territorial limits of municipal corporations immediately contiguous to that municipal corporation, nor a common passenger carrier certified by the Public Utilities Commission unless such bus is devoted exclusively to the transportation of children to and from a school session or a school function, and "school bus" does not include a van or bus used by a licensed child day-care center or type A family day-care home to transport children from the child day-care center or type A family day-care home to a school if the van or bus does not have more than 15 children in the van or bus at any time.
3. Sec. 2923.122(F)(4) defines "object that is indistinguishable from a firearm" as an object made, constructed, or altered so that, to a reasonable person without specialized training in firearms, the object appears to be a firearm.
4. Sec. 2901.01(A)(9) defines "offense of violence" as any of the following: aggravated murder, murder, voluntary manslaughter, involuntary manslaughter, felonious assault, aggravated assault, assault, aggravated menacing, menacing by stalking, menacing, kidnapping, abduction, extortion, rape, sexual battery, gross sexual imposition, aggravated arson, arson, aggravated robbery, robbery, aggravated burglary, inciting to violence, aggravated riot, riot, inducing panic, domestic violence, intimidation, intimidation of attorney, victim, or witness in a criminal case, escape, improperly discharging a firearm at or into a habitation or school, certain forms of burglary, or the former offense of felonious sexual penetration.
5. Federal Gun-Free Schools Act
The Gun-Free Schools Act of 1994 makes a state's federal education funding contingent on the state adopting a law requiring local educational agencies (such as school districts) "to expel from school for a period of not less than one year a student who is determined to have brought a weapon to school . . ." (20 U.S.C. § 8921(b)(1)).
The Act also provides an exception to the otherwise mandatory one-year expulsion requirement, which is the basis for the discretion granted to the district board and superintendent in Revised Code section 3313.66(B)(2). The federal law specifies that the state law "shall allow the chief administrative officer of [the] local educational agency to modify [the] expulsion requirement for a student on a case-by-case basis" (20 U.S.C. § 8921(b)(1) (emphasis added)).
6. Current law on suspensions, expulsions, removal, and permanent exclusion
Current law provides for "suspensions" for minor misconduct (sec. 3313.66(A)), "expulsions" for major infractions of the school discipline code (sec. 3313.66(B)), "removal" to prevent immediate threats (sec. 3313.66(C)), and "permanent exclusion" to prevent continued threats (sec. 3313.662 (not in the bill)).
Each district board of education must adopt a policy that specifies the types of misconduct that warrant each type of discipline (sec. 3313.661(A)). The decision to permanently exclude a student from the public schools is made by the state Superintendent of Public Instruction after a hearing and only upon the recommendation of the district board.
Suspension. District superintendents and school principals may suspend students for up to ten days for misconduct. If at the time the suspension is imposed there are less than ten days left in the school year, the superintendent, and only the superintendent, may apply part or all of the period of the suspension to the following school year. Prior to suspending a student, the superintendent or principal must provide the student with written notice of the intention to suspend the student and an opportunity for an informal hearing to challenge the reasons for the intended suspension or to explain the student's actions. (Sec. 3313.66(A).)
Expulsion--permissive. Only a district superintendent may expel a student. For misconduct that does not involve conveying or possessing a firearm or knife at school or on other school property, the superintendent may expel a student for up to the greater of 80 days or for the number of days remaining in the semester or term. If at the time the expulsion is imposed there are less than 80 days left in the school year, the superintendent may apply part or all of the period of the expulsion to the following school year. (Sec. 3313.66(B)(1).) Any student who is expelled must be removed from the regular school setting, but the district is permitted to provide that student with educational services in an alternative setting (sec. 3313.66(I)).
Expulsion--mandatory. In response to the federal "Gun-Free Schools Act of 1994," existing state law also provides that a district superintendent must expel for a period of one year any student who has brought a firearm to school or onto other property owned or controlled by the school district. The superintendent may reduce the expulsion period on a "case-by-case basis" pursuant to the policy adopted by the district board. Any expulsion imposed under that provision must extend as necessary into the school year following the school year in which the incident took place that gave rise to the expulsion. (Sec. 3313.66(B)(2).)
Additional grounds for one-year expulsion. In addition to the federally required provision, state law also permits a district board to adopt a resolution authorizing the superintendent to expel for up to one year any student who has brought a knife to school or onto other school property or who has possessed either a firearm or knife at school or on other school property when the knife or firearm was brought there by another person. The resolution may also authorize the district superintendent to extend these expulsions, as necessary, into the school year following the school year in which the incident takes place. If a school board adopts this resolution, the district's student discipline policy must define "knife" for purposes of these expulsions. The policy must also specify any reasons for which the district superintendent may reduce any required expulsion period on a case-by-case basis. (Secs. 3313.66(B)(3) and 3313.661(A).)
Due process requirements--expulsion. An expulsion requires written notice to the pupil and the pupil's parent, guardian, or custodian and an opportunity to appear before the superintendent to explain the pupil's actions (sec. 3313.66(B)(5)). Further, the pupil has a right to representation at such appearance, the right to appeal the superintendent's decision to the district board, and a right to appeal the board's decision to the court of common pleas (sec. 3313.66(D) to (E)). The notice also must include notification that the student may be subject to permanent exclusion pursuant to section 3313.662 (not in the bill) if the student is at least 16 years of age and the expulsion is based on a violation any of certain enumerated offenses, which include, among other acts, the conveyance or possession of a deadly weapon or ordnance on school premises (sec. 3313.66(D)).
Applicability of expulsion in another district. A school district may temporarily deny admittance to any student who has been expelled from the schools of another school district if the student's expulsion period in that district has not expired. A school district must offer the student a hearing before temporarily denying the student admittance and must grant admittance upon expiration of the student's expulsion period. (Sec. 3313.66(J)(1).)
The law also generally allows school districts to honor out-of-state expulsions in a similar manner. When a student coming from out of state becomes entitled to attend school in a school district in Ohio and when that student has been expelled or otherwise removed for disciplinary purposes from an out-of-state public school and that expulsion or removal period has not expired, the act allows Ohio school districts to temporarily deny admittance to the student. As under the law for in-state expulsions, the Ohio school district must offer the student a hearing before temporarily denying the student admittance. Unlike in-state expulsions, however, the out-of-state expulsion or removal period does not automatically apply. An Ohio school district may deny admittance only for the shorter of the following two periods: (1) for the remainder of the expulsion or removal period imposed by the out-of-state school or (2) for a period established by the Ohio district, beginning with the date of expulsion or removal from the out-of-state school, that is no greater than the period of expulsion that the pupil would have received under the disciplinary policy of the Ohio district had the offense that gave rise to the out-of-state expulsion or removal been committed while enrolled in the Ohio district. (Sec. 3313.66(J)(2).) For example, if a student has served 15 out of 40 days of an out-of-state expulsion (25 remaining days) and if that student would have been expelled 60 days if the offense had occurred while enrolled in the Ohio district (45 remaining days), the student may be denied admittance only up to the number of days remaining on the out-of-state expulsion, which is the lesser of the two remaining amounts. If, on the other hand, the student had served 15 out of 80 days of an out-of-state expulsion (65 remaining days) and if that student would have been expelled 40 days if the offense had occurred while enrolled in the Ohio district (25 remaining days), the student could be denied admittance only up to the lesser remaining amount, which is 25 days.
Removal from curricular or extracurricular activities. The superintendent or principal or assistant principal may remove a student from curricular or extracurricular activities (or a teacher may remove a student from activities that are under the teacher's supervision) without the prior notice and hearing requirements when the student's presence poses a continuing danger to persons or property or an ongoing threat of disrupting the academic process taking place either within a classroom or elsewhere on the school premises. However, when a student is immediately removed from such settings, notice must be provided as soon as practicable prior to the hearing, which must be held within three school days from the time the initial removal of the student is ordered. (Sec. 3313.66(C).)
A district extracurricular activity suspension policy may authorize the district superintendent or other district administrative personnel to suspend a student from all or any particular extracurricular activities of the district or a school of the district for a period of time as provided in the district's policy (sec. 3313.664).
HISTORY
| ACTION | DATE | JOURNAL ENTRY |
 | | |
| Introduced | 01-20-99 | p. 25 |
| Reported, S. Education | 03-04-99 | p. 160 |