In Florida, a so-called school resource officer has been released after arresting two six-year-olds in a primary school. The case will be investigated, police said in Orlando. According to the police, the two arrests came last Thursday.
- In one case, the man then arrested a six-year-old schoolgirl after she had kicked another person's foot at school. However, the student was reportedly taken back to school after being temporarily detained because the school resource officer was not given permission to transfer the girl to a juvenile detention center.
- The other six-year-old child, on the other hand, was temporarily sent to a juvenile detention center, police said. The police driver should not have known that there was no authorization to transfer the child to the facility.
The man was initially suspended, on Monday he was released. Police chief Orlando Rolón apologized on behalf of the authorities to the affected children and their families.
Statement from OPD Chief Orlando Rolón. pic.twitter.com/qd7msBx0Fw
- Orlando Police (@OrlandoPolice) September 23, 2019"School resource officer" have the same powers as regular police officers, they are usually ordered by a police authority to one or more schools. There they should increase security and work in crime prevention, including lectures and mentoring tasks (you can read more about the definition here).
In view of the two arrests, the massive police presence in schools is again being discussed in the USA. Due to several lethal firearms attacks on US schools, the number of "school resource officers" has risen sharply in recent years.
