Police Chief Shannon Monroe
MOORHEAD (KFGO) – With clarification from the attorney general, Moorhead Police school resource officers are back.
The police department and school district made the decision to remove SROs on the first day of school out of concern with a new “use of force” law that was approved in the final days of the legislative session.
Police Chief Shannon Monroe said he feared that the law may have subjected his officers to civil or criminal liability.
“It could be taking ahold of someone’s arm, any kind of a restraint they were not allowed to do unless it was to prevent imminent bodily harm to themselves or another,” Monroe said. “So, any of those cases where you have a disorderly student, someone trespassing that’s refusing to leave, none of that is imminent bodily harm.”
While Monroe said he’s comfortable with the latest legal opinion, he said he believes the legislature will have to work to fine tune the law.
Clay County Sheriff Mark Empting also removed resource deputies from the Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton and Ulen-Hitterdal school districts. He said he’ll meet with school administrators before making a decision on whether to return them.
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