MN Agencies Pull SROs Over Law Covering Force and Restraint

There's a security shakeup inside Minnesota's largest school district — Anoka-Hennepin Schools — with more than 30,000 students possibly starting the new year without officers patrolling their halls.

"We don't want to not have an officer in the school. That's the last thing I'd ever thought I'd have to do," Chief Eric Peterson of the Anoka Police Department told CBS Minnesota .

It's the same thing Peterson told the city council on Monday night. Anoka and Moorhead are two departments who've opted to remove resource officers from schools, because of a new law regarding restraint and use of force. On Tuesday, Coon Rapids Police Chief Bill Steiner said the department would be pulling resource officers from Anoka-Hennepin schools as well.

The new law states force can only be used when there is a threat of bodily harm or death.

"If we did use force, what would happen to the officer? What would happen to the local municipality? Would they be sued? Would the officer be charged?" said Peterson.

Agencies are making plans to ensure they can rapidly respond to emergencies at the schools without having officers on the campuses.