JACKSONVILLE, Fla — A new statewide grand jury report studying school safety issues lambasted the Duval County School Police Department for "outright fraud" and underreporting incident and crime numbers to make a better impression.
Late Thursday, the Florida Supreme Court website published the third interim report issued by the grand jury — a 27-page document meant to implement and review how well recommendations from the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Public Safety Commission were being realized. The grand jury was brought to fruition last February following a request from Gov. Ron DeSantis following the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School mass shooting.
While the interim report largely focused on Florida's mental-health systems and deficiencies in funding, separately, the report pointed out issues with schools' abilities to differentiate criminal behavior from simple misbehavior. Duval School was used as the key example.
Out of Florida's 67 counties and 74 school districts when alternative and virtual districts are included, Duval County was the only school district singled out.
"It is also apparent, though, that some incentives to 'decrease the statistics' are perverse," the report said. "Administrators are rewarded with promotion or better jobs in larger districts; school police chiefs tout phony 'reductions' in arrests or reports while the actual activity proceeds unabated or accelerates; districts appear 'safer on paper' and thus more attractive to potential new (or even current) students and the funding they represent."
The Times-Union reached out to Duval County Public Schools, the police department and Duval County Schools Police Chief Micheal Edwards for comment Friday morning. This story will be updated when their responses are received.
The report goes on to say that the Duval Schools administration directed Chief Edwards, who in turn directed his officers not to report petty acts of misconduct or misdemeanors to a law enforcement agency.
The Duval County Public Schools Police Department and Chief Edwards, who was appointed in 2015 answer to the school district and Superintendent Diana Greene, who was named Florida's Superintendent of the Year earlier this month.
The grand jury said Duval County was a "representative (though unfortunately not isolated) example" and noted a PowerPoint training presentation where the school police department said that Chapter 1006 — a policy about zero tolerance for crime and victimization in schools — "did not require the reporting of petty acts of misconduct and misdemeanors to a law enforcement agency," but that's not a correct interpretation of the law. The report said this training was taken to the next level, with the district police not reporting any misdemeanor crimes. The Times-Union has requested a copy of the PowerPoint presentation being referenced as well as supplemental written directives.
The report added that written directives, developed by administrators and mandated by the police chief and school administration, considered things like extortion — which is a felony — and stalking to not require reports.
"These are by no means the only examples," the report said. "In some jurisdictions the exceptions have not been content to merely swallow the rule, they have actually weaponized it to their advantage."
Finally, the report said that gang-related incidents were dramatically underrepresented by the Duval County Schools Police Department.
According to Florida Department of Education training, when School Environmental Safety Incident Reporting incidents occur, schools are required to indicate if the incident is gang-related or not, something the grand jury says Duval County Schools Police failed to represent accurately.
"Although Duval County School Board Police has an active Gang Liaison detective, and we have seen numerous photos, videos, social media boasts, and testimony regarding widespread gang activity on school premises, from 2016-2020 the District has reported-out of approximately 30,000 [School Environmental Safety Incident Reporting] incidents-a grand total of only six it describes as gang-related," the report said. "It appears to us that this number dramatically underrepresents the level of gang activity in Duval County schools."
The grand jury called the Duval Schools incidents examples of counterproductive behavior.
"No one is made safer by this chicanery," the report said. "We have heard multiple accounts of students whose criminal behavior goes unreported who — either during their later school years or upon graduation — commit more significant crimes without understanding real-world consequences and reap longer prison terms."
The report also suggested that the school police department's approach may embolden students who would otherwise refrain from engaging in dangerous behavior.
"Victims and witnesses suffer in silence rather than report crimes which will be neither investigated nor punished. Even seasoned police officers become demoralized, disillusioned and frustrated," the report said. "Exposure to this circle of absurdity breeds students, teachers and even law enforcement officers who become disenfranchised and abandon the school system altogether in search of a more rational environment. This situation is unacceptable."
To combat the issues it described, the grand jury recommended that school police shouldn't be in a position where it answers to officials or administrators. The report calls for transparency, accountability and for Legislature to remove school districts' ability to define what should be reported to law enforcement.
"The districts have proven either unwilling or incapable of rationally implementing what was no doubt well-intended legislation," the grand jury report said. "It is time to rein in the runaway stagecoach."
This story is developing.
DCPS released the following statement:
"The safety and security of students and employees remains the highest priority of the district. The Interim report covers a number of years. During this time the district has made procedural improvements related to student behavioral incident reporting. We remain committed to examining current procedures to ensure strict compliance. To assure the School Board and the public, Duval County Schools will pursue an external review of district and school reporting practices to determine if further improvements are needed.
As the Grand Jury is still actively convened, we look forward to providing additional updates upon the conclusion of its proceedings."
Chair Elizabeth Andersen released a statement, as well:
"The findings presented are being taken seriously and will be thoroughly reviewed by the Duval School Board. We are committed to providing a safe educational environment for our children and communities. I appreciate Dr. Greene’s commitment to welcoming an external entity to provide a review and look forward to her recommendations for next steps."
