Melissa Hortman

Speaker of the House

Minnesota
District 34B
House of
Anoka
Hennepin
Representatives

September 12, 2023

Mark Bruley, Chief of Police Glen Schneider, Chief of Police

Jay Stroebel, City Manager Bret Heitkamp, City Manager
City of Brooklyn Park City of Champlin
5200 – 85th Avenue N. 11955 Champlin Drive
Brooklyn Park, MN 55443 Champlin, MN 55316

Dear city leaders,

Thank you for taking the time to meet with me on August 24, 2023. I am writing to let you know the
status of conversations regarding the changes to the two education statutes you raised with me. Since we
met, I have been working continuously with the Governor, his team, Senate Majority Leader Kari
Dziedzic, and her team, as well as public officials across the state to address the concerns you raised.
The work is ongoing.

The most significant issue you raised with me was whether the use of force that an officer in a school
may use depends upon whether an officer is a School Resource Officer (SRO) or not.

There is one and only one standard for use of force by peace officers regardless of their role: State law
provides standards for the authorized use of force for public officers at 609.06, subd. 1.

Below, I have included reference to the changes in 2023 in the education statutes, and to other provisions
of those laws which remained unchanged, and to other relevant statutes.

Change to corporal punishment statute

As you know, two statutes that were amended in 2023 have been cited in discussions about SROs in
August and September. The first is the corporal punishment statute, 121A.58.

The legislature amended the corporal punishment statute in subdivision 2 to provide that prone restraint
and certain physical holds were not allowed as corporal punishment. New language at subdivision 3 also
provides that "nothing in this section precludes the use of reasonable force under section 121A.582."

In order to determine what level of force is allowed, we then must turn to section 121A.582.

Change to school officials reasonable force standard

It is the changes in this section where debate is currently focused. However, it is the portion of the
statute that we did not change that articulates the standard by which use of force will be judged.

463 State Office Building, 100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., St. Paul, Minnesota 55155 651 296 4280
Email: rep.melissa.hortman@house.mn.gov
The legislature made certain changes to subdivision 1 relating to the use of force. Subdivisions 2 and 3
provide the circumstances under which a school official would face civil or criminal liability, and the
defenses an individual would have against a civil or criminal action.

Importantly, the legislature did not change 121A.582, subdivision 4 which provides. “Any right or
defense in this section is supplementary to those specified in section 121A.58, 121A.67, 123B.25, or
609.06, subdivision 1.” In other words, an individual will not face civil or criminal liability if that
individual complies with Minnesota statute 609.06, subdivision 1.

Existing use of force standard for law enforcement

The legislature did not make any changes to the statute governing authorized use of force. The instances
where a public officer may use force include: “(i) in effecting a lawful arrest; or (ii) in the execution of
legal process; or (iii) in enforcing an order of the court; or
(iv) in executing any other duty imposed upon the public officer by law.”

I understand that at one point in time, there was confusion about whether the League of Minnesota Cities
Insurance Trust was indicating any changes in insurance rates or coverage for SROs. At this point in
time, the League has clarified that there is no change in either. (see 9/7/23 LMC statement, attached).

Again, I am grateful for the meeting we had on August 24, 2023. Based on the clarity of Minnesota law
when viewed in totality, it is my hope that we can get SROs back in schools as soon as possible. I’m
committed to continuing this conversation and am happy to follow up with an in-person meeting or a
Zoom meeting. (I’m sure we all agree that Zoom is a little less desirable but is sometimes much easier to
schedule.) Thank you for your public service.

Sincerely,

Melissa Hortman
Speaker of the House

cc: Cory McIntyre, Superintendent, Anoka Hennepin School District 11

Attachment: 9/7/23 LMC statement