Austin, TX — Texas schools have referred children ages 10 to 13 for prosecution more than 47,000 times since 2014, often for misconduct that previously might have been handled by teachers or principals.
A joint investigation by The New York Times and San Antonio Express-News found the referrals increasingly involved relatively minor behavior, including classroom disruptions, threats, vaping and confrontations with school staff. Few cases involved serious physical harm.
A referral does not necessarily result in criminal charges, but it can mean a child is handcuffed, taken into police custody and processed through the juvenile justice system.
In one case, a 12-year-old girl who refused to go to the principal’s office was arrested and taken to school police headquarters. Body-camera footage reportedly showed officers twisting her arm behind her back until she complied with fingerprinting.
The rise coincides with Texas dramatically expanding police presence in schools following the 2022 Uvalde massacre. The state now has nearly 400 school district police departments and about 11,000 officers trained to work in schools. A separate investigation found officers using Tasers, pepper spray and physical force against students, including young children.
Texas law says school police should not handle routine student discipline, but critics argue the expanding law-enforcement presence has increasingly criminalized behavior better addressed through school discipline or mental-health services.
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