NJ Attorney General Issues Directive Establishing “Statewide Handle with Care” Program
November 1, 2020 - Posted by Ed Esposito
Unfortunately, law enforcement officers across the State often handle incidents where children have been exposed to traumatic events. Such incidents include times when children have witnessed violence or when they have experienced the sudden death of a family member. Although these incidents can be traumatic for adults, the impact on children can be long-lasting and they have the potential to be intensified unintentionally. For example, if a child has a behavioral issue at school after going through a traumatic experience at home, they could be disciplined by a school administrator who has no knowledge of what the child recently experienced. If this occurs, the overall traumatic impact on the child is likely going to be far greater and could lead to other issues if not properly addressed.
Due to the complex nature of handling incidents involving children, the NJ Attorney General has issued several policies throughout the years that guide law enforcement officers on how to handle a variety of situations. There are policies on child abductions, handling acts of delinquency and there are even procedures on handling the anonymous surrender of a newborn baby. Add to that list the newest policy, Attorney General Directive 2020-09 – Establishing “Statewide Handle with Care” Program, issued on October 6, 2020.
The Statewide Handle with Care Program provides procedures that law enforcement officers must follow when they respond to incidents where a child has been exposed to an “adverse childhood experience.” All law enforcement officers must receive training on the new program by December 31, 2020, when Directive 2020-09 takes effect.
A “traumatic event” is defined in the Directive as:
According to the policy, the definition “shall be broadly construed and may refer to, but is not limited to, [these] incidents when a child is a victim or witness[.]” For the purposes of this Directive, a child or children “refers to any student, regardless of age, enrolled in pre-school through twelfth grade at either a public or private school.”
Once the new Directive takes effect, a “Handle with Care” notice must be completed by a law enforcement officer when there is a “traumatic event” where a child is present. The Directive addresses the privacy of impacted children by requiring that the notices only include the child’s name, age, grade, school of enrollment, and date/time of the incident. The Directive prohibits law enforcement from including details of the incident in the notice and it prohibits the sharing of investigative reports related to the incident. Officers must be careful not to disclose any details that would violate the privacy interests of any of the parties involved whenever there is additional communication between law enforcement and the impacted child’s school according to the Directive.
The notice must be completed promptly after the encounter and the notice must be sent immediately to the appropriate point of contact at the child’s school. In cases where the child attends a school in another municipality, the completed notice is sent immediately to the local law enforcement agency where the child’s school is located and they are responsible for sending the completed notice to the school’s appropriate point of contact. The Directive defines “immediately” as meaning “prior to the next school day or prior to the child arriving at school, whichever is sooner.”
The goal of the Directive is to give schools notice when a child has experienced a traumatic event so that educators can appropriately “handle the child with care” within their academic environment.
Unfortunately, law enforcement officers across the State often handle incidents where children have been exposed to traumatic events. Such incidents include times when children have witnessed violence or when they have experienced the sudden death of a family member. Although these incidents can be traumatic for adults, the impact on children can be long-lasting and they have the potential to be intensified unintentionally. For example, if a child has a behavioral issue at school after going through a traumatic experience at home, they could be disciplined by a school administrator who has no knowledge of what the child recently experienced. If this occurs, the overall traumatic impact on the child is likely going to be far greater and could lead to other issues if not properly addressed.
Due to the complex nature of handling incidents involving children, the NJ Attorney General has issued several policies throughout the years that guide law enforcement officers on how to handle a variety of situations. There are policies on child abductions, handling acts of delinquency and there are even procedures on handling the anonymous surrender of a newborn baby. Add to that list the newest policy, Attorney General Directive 2020-09 – Establishing “Statewide Handle with Care” Program, issued on October 6, 2020.
The Statewide Handle with Care Program provides procedures that law enforcement officers must follow when they respond to incidents where a child has been exposed to an “adverse childhood experience.” All law enforcement officers must receive training on the new program by December 31, 2020, when Directive 2020-09 takes effect.
A “traumatic event” is defined in the Directive as:
- the arrest of an individual who resides in the home where the child is present;
- a search warrant executed at the residence;
- drug/alcohol overdose of an individual who resides in the home where the child is present;
- suicide, or attempted suicide, of an individual who resides in the home where the child is present;
- an incident of domestic violence;
- physical/sexual abuse;
- community violence;
- a bullied child or a child who is bullying others;
- forced displacement from the residence;
- involvement with DCP&P;
- house fires;
- any incident where a child is identified at the scene as being exposed to trauma (i.e. crime/drug activity at the scene); or
- the sudden death of an immediate family member or guardian of the child of which the police are made aware.
According to the policy, the definition “shall be broadly construed and may refer to, but is not limited to, [these] incidents when a child is a victim or witness[.]” For the purposes of this Directive, a child or children “refers to any student, regardless of age, enrolled in pre-school through twelfth grade at either a public or private school.”
Once the new Directive takes effect, a “Handle with Care” notice must be completed by a law enforcement officer when there is a “traumatic event” where a child is present. The Directive addresses the privacy of impacted children by requiring that the notices only include the child’s name, age, grade, school of enrollment, and date/time of the incident. The Directive prohibits law enforcement from including details of the incident in the notice and it prohibits the sharing of investigative reports related to the incident. Officers must be careful not to disclose any details that would violate the privacy interests of any of the parties involved whenever there is additional communication between law enforcement and the impacted child’s school according to the Directive.
The notice must be completed promptly after the encounter and the notice must be sent immediately to the appropriate point of contact at the child’s school. In cases where the child attends a school in another municipality, the completed notice is sent immediately to the local law enforcement agency where the child’s school is located and they are responsible for sending the completed notice to the school’s appropriate point of contact. The Directive defines “immediately” as meaning “prior to the next school day or prior to the child arriving at school, whichever is sooner.”
The goal of the Directive is to give schools notice when a child has experienced a traumatic event so that educators can appropriately “handle the child with care” within their academic environment.