H. B. 2807

(By Delegate Clements, Leggett, Anderson, Manuel, Miller, Capito and Mezzatesta)
[Introduced March 28, 1997; referred to the
Committee on Education then the Judiciary.]

A BILL to amend and reenact section one-a, article five, chapter eighteen-a of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to violations involving the possession of other deadly weapons in addition to firearms as a basis for placement of a student with a disability in an alternative educations setting for a period of not more than forty-five calendar days.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section one-a, article five, chapter eighteen-a of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 5. AUTHORITY; RIGHTS; RESPONSIBILITY.

§18A-5-1a. Possessing deadly weapons on premises of educational facilities; possessing a controlled substance on premises of educational facilities; assaults and batteries committed by pupils upon teachers or other school personnel; temporary suspension, hearing; procedure, notice and formal hearing; extended suspension; sale of narcotic; expulsion; exception.
(a) A principal shall suspend a pupil from school or from transportation to or from the school on any school bus if the pupil, in the determination of the principal, after an informal hearing pursuant to subsection (d) of this section, has: (i) Violated the provisions of subsection (b), section fifteen, article two, chapter sixty-one of this code; (ii) violated the provisions of subsection (b), section eleven-a, article seven, chapter sixty-one of this code; or (iii) sold a narcotic drug, as defined in section one hundred one, article one, chapter sixty-a of this code, on the premises of an educational facility, at a school-sponsored function or on a school bus. If a student has been suspended pursuant to this subsection, the principal shall, within twenty-four hours, request that the county superintendent recommend to the county board that the student be expelled. Upon such a request by a principal, the county superintendent shall recommend to the county board that the student be expelled. Upon such recommendation, the county board shall conduct a hearing in accordance with subsections (e) and (f) of this section to determine if the student committed the alleged violation. If the county board of education finds that the student did commit the alleged violation, the county board of education shall expel the student.
(b) A principal shall suspend a pupil from school, or from transportation to or from the school on any school bus, if the pupil, in the determination of the principal after an informal hearing pursuant to subsection (d) of this section, has: (i) Committed an act or engaged in conduct that would constitute a felony under the laws of this state if committed by an adult; or (ii) unlawfully possessed on the premises of an educational facility or at a school-sponsored function a controlled substance governed by the Uniform Controlled Substances Act as described in chapter sixty-a of this code. If a student has been suspended pursuant to this subsection, the principal may request that the superintendent recommend to the county board that the student be expelled. Upon such recommendation by the county superintendent, the county board may hold a hearing in accordance with the provisions of subsections (e) and (f) of this section to determine if the student committed the alleged violation. If the county board finds that the student did commit the alleged violation, the county board may expel the student.
(c) A principal may suspend a pupil from school, or transportation to or from the school on any school bus, if the pupil, in the determination of the principal after an informal hearing pursuant to subsection (d) of this section: (i) Threatened to injure, or in any manner injured, a pupil, teacher, administrator or other school personnel; (ii) willfully disobeyed a teacher; (iii) possessed alcohol in an educational facility, on school grounds, a school bus or at any school-sponsored function; (iv) used profane language directed at a school employee or pupil; (v) intentionally defaced any school property; (vi) participated in any physical altercation with another person while under the authority of school personnel; or (vii) habitually violated school rules or policies. If a student has been suspended pursuant to this subsection, the principal may request that the superintendent recommend to the county board that the student be expelled. Upon such recommendation by the county superintendent, the county board may hold a hearing in accordance with the provisions of subsections (e) and (f) of this section to determine if the student committed the alleged violation. If the county board finds that the student did commit the alleged violation, the county board may expel the student.
(d) The actions of any pupil which may be grounds for his or her suspension or expulsion under the provisions of this section shall be reported immediately to the principal of the school in which the pupil is enrolled. If the principal determines that the alleged actions of the pupil would be grounds for suspension, he or she shall conduct an informal hearing for the pupil immediately after the alleged actions have occurred. The hearing shall be held before the pupil is suspended unless the principal believes that the continued presence of the pupil in the school poses a continuing danger to persons or property or an ongoing threat of disrupting the academic process, in which case the pupil shall be suspended immediately and a hearing held as soon as practicable after the suspension.
The pupil and his or her parent(s), guardian(s) or custodian(s), as the case may be, shall be given telephonic notice, if possible, of this informal hearing, which notice shall briefly state the grounds for suspension.
At the commencement of the informal hearing, the principal shall inquire of the pupil as to whether he or she admits or denies the charges. If the pupil does not admit the charges, he or she shall be given an explanation of the evidence possessed by the principal and an opportunity to present his or her version of the occurrence. At the conclusion of the hearing or upon the failure of the noticed student to appear, the principal may suspend the pupil for a maximum of ten school days, including the time prior to the hearing, if any, for which the pupil has been excluded from school.
The principal shall report any suspension the same day it has been decided upon, in writing, to the parent(s), guardian(s) or custodian(s) of the pupil by certified mail, return receipt requested: Provided, That certified mail is not required if one or both of the parents, guardians, or custodians of the pupil are present at the time the suspension is decided upon, or if any one of them acknowledges receipt of the report by signing and dating a copy of the report. The suspension also shall be reported to the county superintendent and to the faculty senate of the school at the next meeting after the suspension.
(e) Prior to a hearing before the county board, the county board shall cause a written notice, which states the charges and the recommended disposition, to be served upon the pupil and his or her parent(s), guardian(s) or custodian(s), as the case may be. Such notice shall set forth a date and time at which such hearing shall be held, which date shall be within the ten-day period of suspension imposed by the principal.
(f) The county board shall hold the scheduled hearing to determine if the pupil should be reinstated or should, or under the provisions of this section, must be expelled from school. At this hearing the pupil may be represented by counsel, may call his or her own witnesses to verify his or her version of the incident and may confront and cross-examine witnesses supporting the charge against him or her. The hearing shall be recorded by mechanical means, unless recorded by a certified court reporter. The hearing may be postponed for good cause shown by the pupil but he or she shall remain under suspension until after the hearing. The state board may adopt other supplementary rules of procedure to be followed in these hearings. At the conclusion of the hearing the county board either shall order the pupil reinstated immediately or at the end of his or her initial suspension or shall suspend the pupil for a further designated number of days or shall expel the pupil from the public schools of such county.
(g) Pupils may be expelled pursuant to the provisions of this section for a period not to exceed one school year, except that if a pupil is determined to have violated the provisions of subsection (a) of this section the pupil shall be expelled for a period of not less than twelve consecutive months: Provided, That the county superintendent may lessen the mandatory period of twelve consecutive months for the expulsion of the pupil if the circumstances of the pupil's case demonstrably warrant. Upon the reduction of the period of expulsion, the county superintendent shall prepare a written statement setting forth the circumstances of the pupil's case which warrant the reduction of the period of expulsion. The county superintendent shall submit the statement to the county board, the principal, the faculty senate and the local school improvement council for the school from which the pupil was expelled.
(h) Notwithstanding the preceding provisions of this section, if a pupil has been classified as a student with a disability, prior to performing the actions giving rise to this section, special consideration shall be given to such pupil as hereinafter provided:
(1) Regardless of whether or not the misconduct is the proximate result of the disability of a student, a student with a disability may be suspended immediately for up to ten consecutive days for each occurrence of misconduct or when it is necessary for the protection of the student, the protection of school personnel, or the protection of other students;
(2) If the misconduct is found to be the proximate result of the disability of the student, then, subject to the provisions of subsection (3) of this section, the student may not be suspended or expelled for more than ten consecutive days for each occurrence of misconduct or for each occurrence when it is necessary for the protection of the student, the protection of school personnel, or the protection of other students;
(3) A student with a disability who has committed a violation involving the possession of a firearm or other dangerous weapon, as defined in section two, article seven, chapter sixty-one of this code, on the school premises or at a school-sponsored function may be placed in an alternative educational setting by the individualized education program committee, as described in section one, article twenty, chapter eighteen of this code, for a period of not more than forty-five calendar days. During this time, if a parent, guardian, or custodian requests a due process hearing to contest placement of the student, the student shall remain in the alternative education setting during the pendency of any proceeding, unless the parents and the county board agree otherwise. At the conclusion of the proceeding, if it is determined that the student with a disability committed a violation involving the possession of a firearm or other dangerous weapon and the violation is not the proximate result of the disability of the student, the student with a disability shall be expelled from school for the period set forth in the applicable provisions of this section: Provided, That special education and related services must be provided during this additional period of expulsion;
(4) If the behavior giving rise to the violation or activity is not the proximate result of the disability of the student, a student with a disability ~~who has committed a violation involving the possession of a deadly weapon, as defined in section two, article seven, chapter sixty-one of this code, other than a firearm, or~~ who has committed a violation or has engaged in any other activity for which suspension or expulsion is a punishment under the provisions of this article, shall be suspended or expelled from school in the manner described in this section. In addition, special education and related services must be provided during the period of a suspension or expulsion exceeding ten days; and
(5) If the student with a disability has been suspended, and it is determined that the misconduct is the proximate result of the disability of the student, it is recommended that school officials determine whether the student is receiving appropriate instructional and related services in the current placement. In addition, the violations may be addressed through strategies, including, but not limited to, the following: (i) Conflict management and behavior management strategies which are not inconsistent with the individualized education program of the student; (ii) student and teacher training initiatives which are not inconsistent with the individualized education program of the student; (iii) an initiation by professional educators, at any time, of a change in the placement of the student through an individualized education program meeting to be held within twenty-one days, subject to the applicable procedural safeguards; and (iv) an initiation of a court order to remove the student from school, if there is belief that maintaining the student in the current educational placement is substantially likely to cause injury to the student or others.
(i) In all hearings under this section, facts shall be found by a preponderance of the evidence.
(j) For purposes of this section, nothing herein shall be construed to be in conflict with the federal provisions of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 1990 (PL 101-476).
(k) If a pupil transfers to another school in West Virginia, the principal of the school from which the pupil transfers shall provide a written record of any disciplinary action taken against the pupil to the principal of the school to which the pupil transfers.
(l) Principals may exercise any other authority and perform any other duties to discipline pupils consistent with state and federal law, including policies of the state board of education.

NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to provide that violations involving the possession of other deadly weapons in addition to firearms is a basis for placement of a student with a disability in an alternative education setting for a period of not more than forty-five calendar days.

Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.