On October 26, just before 9 a.m., administrators at Northeast High School contacted a 16-year-old male student who was exhibiting symptoms of being under the influence of a controlled substance; the student also had a backpack that smelled strongly of marijuana. Administrators escorted the student to the office, as well as summoned a nurse for an evaluation. Administrators contacted the student’s parent, advised them of the situation, and received permission to look inside the student’s backpack.
The student was uncooperative with staff, and administrators requested the assistance of the Northeast school resource officer. When the SRO arrived, he spoke with the student for 10-15 minutes, explaining the situation and attempting to calm the student. The SRO explained how they could resolve this issue, such as the student participating in the School-Based Alcohol & Marijuana Intervention. However, the student gripped the backpack and refused to speak with the officer. As the SRO continued to try to discuss the situation, the student shoved the backpack under his seat and advised the SRO, “If you take my backpack, I’m going to (expressive term) you up.” At this time, the SRO became concerned because the student’s reaction was extreme for potentially possessing only a small amount of marijuana.
Due to the student refusing to speak with him, the way he gripped the backpack tightly, and his threat to assault the officer if the backpack was taken, the SRO became concerned that the student may have had something more serious in his back pack, such as a weapon. The backpack was now a potential safety concern, and the SRO believed it was important to separate the student from the backpack. As the officer took the backpack, the student began punching the officer and then threw the officer into a file cabinet. Another school security guard was present and attempted to help the officer gain control of the student, but the student also began punching and kicking the security guard. The officer and the security guard finally placed the student in handcuffs after several minutes of struggling. Yet after the officer sat the student up, the student shoved his body backwards against the officer, causing him to fall backwards. Officers finally placed the student in a police cruiser.
Officers searched the backpack and located a glass marijuana pipe. The SRO sustained multiple lacerations and bruising, and the school security officer suffered a back injury and lacerations. The student reported no injuries from the incident.
Officers arrested the student for 3rd Degree Assault on a Police Officer, 3rd Degree Assault, and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. He was turned over to staff at the Lancaster County Youth Services Center