Attorney: Student slammed to floor suffered concussion

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The video doesn’t show what led up to or followed the episode. Akpuda said the officer arrived a few seconds after the girl tried to break up the fight.

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“He drags her farther away from the actual fight after it was broken up,” said Akpuda, who spoke with The Associated Press on the phone Wednesday, along with her mother. “That’s when he proceeds to lift her up and slam her down to the ground.”

The officer, identified by Rolesville officials as Ruben De Los Santos, is on paid administrative leave. Police Chief Bobby Langston said he has asked the State Bureau of Investigation to review the case.

Town officials have declined to answer additional questions, including whether they know if De Los Santos has an attorney. The Associated Press has been unable to reach the officer by phone or email.

The officer is Hispanic and Darwin is black, Mayor Frank Eagles said. The officer has been assigned to the school since it opened in 2013, Eagles said. About 2,200 students in grades nine through 12 attend the school.

The video prompted a coalition of advocates for young people to ask federal officials again to respond to a complaint they originally filed more than six years ago.

Groups including Legal Aid of North Carolina wrote Thursday to the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights, renewing concerns about the treatment of students in Wake County schools. The original complaint filed in September 2010 says Wake County schools discriminate racially when they mete out discipline.

“Discriminatory discipline practices have remained virtually unchanged over the past six years. That clearly demonstrates that the problem is systemic,” Jennifer Story of Legal Aid of North Carolina said in a news release. The groups are “asking for ongoing monitoring to ensure compliance,” the release says.

Wake County school system officials are concerned about what’s shown in the video, system spokeswoman Lisa Luten said in an email Thursday. While acknowledging disparities, they also point to higher graduation rates, increased proficiency and reduced suspensions as signs of improvement, she said.

Wake County schools don’t have their own police force so the district contracts with local police to place school resource officers on campuses. The agreement allows officers to use force but it cannot be “excessive, arbitrary or malicious.”

Officials with the National Association of School Resource Officers wouldn’t comment on what happened at Rolesville High School. The association’s recommendations include starting with the selection of school officers, who must have the right mindset to work with young people, said D.J. Schoeff, a school officer in Carmel, Indiana, and NASRO second-vice-president.

“Although we are law enforcement, that is the last-resort function that we have,” he said. Building relationships, deterring crime and acting as an informal counsellor or mentor are primary duties, he said.

NASRO estimates that 14,000 to 20,000 officers work in schools in the United States, he said. About 1,000 officers worldwide trained with NASRO last year, he said.

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Follow Martha Waggoner on Twitter at http://twitter.com/mjwaggonernc .

Martha Waggoner, The Associated Press