MILWAUKEE — A new lawsuit was filed this week against Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS) over the lack of school resource officers (SROs) in the district.
The Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty (WILL) is suing MPS for not meeting state requirements for having police in schools.
"It's time to hold people accountable,” said plaintiff and MPS parent Charlene Abughrin.
WILL filed the lawsuit on behalf of Abughrin. She has one son who currently goes to MPS and had five other kids graduate from the district.
"I am fighting for all of the kids in Milwaukee,” Abughrin said.
This lawsuit comes nearly ten months after the state mandated that MPS add SROs back into the schools.
Watch: Parent sues MPS over lack of school resource officers
"I think it's direly needed for MPS," Abughrin said.
TMJ4’s Megan Lee asked Abughrin why she chose to take legal action.
She said, “I'm trying to keep primarily children safe, and again MPS needs to be accountable."
WILL Associate Counsel, Lauren Greuel agrees with Abughrin.
"MPS needs to be held accountable and the way to start that is for them to follow the law,” Greuel said.
She added, “Students should be able to go to school and feel safe every single day."
Abughrin thinks SROs are good for the overall well-being of our community.
"If they can see the police interacting with the community I think it will make for better relationships,” Abughrin explained.
MPS sent the following statement:
“Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS) remains ready to implement a School Resource Officer (SRO) program as soon as officers are available. As MPS does not employ, hire, or train City of Milwaukee police officers, the district is waiting for the city to provide resources for the program. The district recently reached out to the Milwaukee Police Department to initiate the process to select officers, but this request was denied.
MPS has taken Act 12 very seriously from the beginning, engaging with city partners to build a sustainable SRO program. A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that facilitates implementation of an SRO program was agreed upon by all stakeholders in September. Since that time, the City Attorney’s Office has requested changes that MPS agreed to. The district is now waiting for the City Attorney’s Office to return the updated MOU. Even with minor adjustments, MPS remains ready to begin the program once officers are selected and trained.
All parties continue to engage in financial negotiations related to this program, which is the result of a shared revenueagreement [content.govdelivery.com] negotiated by the City of Milwaukee to receive approximately $200 million dollars in new revenue annually. The shared revenue agreement requires those funds to be directed to public safety, including law enforcement, fire protection, and emergency medical services. MPS is not a recipient of these funds.
MPS looks forward to working with MPD to begin the process to select and train officers who are committed to improving relationships among schools, law enforcement, youth, and the greater community.
The safety of students and staff is a top priority for MPS. The district has a comprehensive safety program in place, which includes the employment of more than 230 safety officers in MPS schools. This program will continue until, and after, the SRO program is implemented in the district.
As far as the lawsuit specifically is concerned, MPS cannot comment on pending litigation.”
However, a spokesperson for the City of Milwaukee sent the following statement:
“Milwaukee Public Schools misrepresents the status of the negotiation with the city. Discussions took place as recently as this morning between attorneys for both sides. It is the position of both the Mayor and the Common Council President that the services MPS receives from the Milwaukee Police should be paid by the school district. Insincere public statements from MPS do not advance good faith discussions.”
You can read the full Writ of Mandamus below:
Complaint for Writ of Mandamus by TMJ4 News on Scribd
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