DA won't prosecute teachers for 'reasonable force'

News media from across the state made a big deal out of the announcement last week by Northampton County District Attorney John Morganelli that his office would not prosecute teachers who use reasonable force to defend themselves against unruly students.

Was it a campaign ploy - Morganelli was an unsuccessful candidate for the Democratic nomination for state attorney general in Tuesday's primary? Or was it convenient timing? The Morning Call newspaper had run a major page 1 investigative report two days earlier into violence in the Allentown School District, noting that there were nearly 3,000 incidents in the district in the 2014-15 school year, 10 percent of which wound up in arrests.

Morganelli insists that teachers have an "absolute right" to use reasonable force against a threatening student. He said he is sending a message that Northampton County educators have a right to defend themselves and other students, too.

Morganelli used the occasion to get in some politicking, too. He said he's tired of political correctness resulting in "the inmates taking over the asylum."

"When you talk to these teachers, they're afraid of their students," he said. "They're afraid to go to school. They're afraid to teach. We need to be on their side, not the side of the disruptive students."

Morganelli also said he is confident that most teachers know the difference between reasonable and excessive force. "I think most folks in our schools are pretty smart … and they know they cannot pummel a student."

Morganelli acknowledged that there is a Pennsylvania law which addresses this issue, so we are curious as to why he felt the need to call a news conference to state the obvious. What Morganelli is proposing is already on the books and in force in Northampton and the other 66 counties in the state.

Here is what existing state law says:

Teachers and school authorities may use reasonable force under the following circumstances:

• To quell a disturbance

• To obtain possession of weapons or other dangerous objects

• For the purpose of self-defense

• For the protection of persons and property

Carbon County District Attorney Jean Engler said she cannot recall a recent case during her tenure in the DA's office where a teacher was charged with assault of a student. In such an eventuality, Engler said, "We would sit down and discuss the specific circumstances of a case to determine whether the action was allowed under the law."

She cited state law,which she said is specific as to what teachers can and cannot do.

Schuylkill County District Attorney Christine Holman was curious about why Morganelli made such a pronouncement, agreeing with Engler that there are already laws on the books that deal with the situation. "I don't see anything earth-shattering here," she said. In the 28 months she has been in office and four years between 2001 and 2005 when she was assistant DA, she cannot recall a teacher assault of a student case in the county.

Morganelli also says that he has no jurisdiction in civil suits brought by students or their parents against a teacher who intervenes, but he did encourage school boards and administrators to stand by their teachers and fight cases in court when teachers are sued rather than accept a settlement to save money or for convenience. "If you keep paying out money on cases to settle them, they're just going to keep bringing them," Morganelli said.

So, what can we think about all of this? Was Morganelli trying to get the support of teachers by his hard-line comments, even though their union - the Pennsylvania State Education Association - endorsed one of his two rivals, Josh Shapiro, the winner of the Democratic attorney general primary?

Last month, Morganelli unleashed a blistering attack on the PSEA for its endorsement methodology. He claims it is based more on friendships than on the stances of candidates and their commitment to education.

As "proof" of his allegation, Morganelli said the PSEA endorsed Republican Tom Corbett for attorney general in 2008, positioning Corbett to become governor in 2012 and someone who was hell-bent "to bring public education to its knees."

In this just concluded primary, Morganelli said, PSEA's leadership had endorsed Shapiro even though he has no courtroom experience and has accepted $50,000 in campaign donations from a charter school support organization. Many educators are critical of state rules which compel school districts and taxpayers to pay large sums to create and maintain charter schools.

The political season produces many strange scenarios, and Morganelli's tough talk seems hollow given how the law already speaks plainly and decisively to the issue. If Morganelli was trying to get "good press" by calling the news conference, he succeeded, because the story was picked up by The Associated Press and used in dozens of newspapers and TV and radio stations across the state.

By Bruce Frassinelli | tneditor@tnonline.com