Moorhead Police suspend SRO program in city schools until further notice

(Moorhead, MN) -- Moorhead schools will temporarily have no SRO's on their properties until further notice, due to a change in state law regarding holds for students. 

Moorhead Public Schools made the announcement in an email sent to parents and guardians on Thursday. The email says the district's SRO agreement is temporarily suspended due to a law passed in the Minnesota Legislative Session.

"As we start the new school year, we are sad to announce that we were informed by the Moorhead Police Department (MPD) that they are temporarily suspending their agreement to provide School Resource Officers (SROs) to the schools of our district due to a new law passed in the 2023 Minnesota Legislative session," said a portion of the statement sent to parents.

Captain Deric Swenson with Moorhead Police cited a document provided by the Minnesota Chiefs of Police Association (MCPA), which says a new law passed in Minnesota's legislative session is not clear, despite a recent opinion issued by Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison. The current clarification sent by the Attorney General allows the SROs to interfere if there is an imminent threat of bodily harm or death, but MCPA says more clarifications are needed if damage to property, trespassing, or disorderly conduct is the crime committed.

"If an SRO is involved in these situations, what authority does an SRO have to intervene and stop the criminal behavior, "said Jeff Potts, the Executive Director of the Minnesota Chiefs of Police Association. "The Attorney General indicated these are important questions but directed us to the legislature. Had the MCPA and other stakeholders been included in the original legislative process, these present questions could have been discussed, and a consensus could have been reached"

The changes in law puts into question the use of prone restraints and other physical holds if the crime committed is not causing bodily harm or death. You can read the law by clicking here. 

"Recent changes in Minnesota law have been interpreted by legal counsel to remove the standard law enforcement authority of officers contracted by school districts or assigned to work in schools. This includes Moorhead’s School Resource Officers." said Capt. Swenson. "Until a solution is identified – and the more than 30-year-old collaboration with Moorhead Area Public Schools can be resumed – the City of Moorhead Police Department has reassigned its School Resource Officers back to patrol duty."

MPD says it will continue to provide security and response priority even without SRO's within the building. It is unclear at this time when the SRO program at Moorhead Area Public Schools will be reinstated.