In Holliston MA, the police are threatening to take bikes away from kids who refuse to wear helmets. The 'School Resource Officer' insists that it's for the students' own safety.
"We're not looking to take bikes away from the kids who forget their helmets," School Resource Officer David Gatchell said yesterday. "This isn't something where we're looking to collect a hundred bikes. We don't want to seize bikes, but for the kids who repeatedly ignore the warnings, it will happen."The article also mentions that the SRO is standing with the School Superintendent who says, "Officer Gatchell was standing next to me a couple of weeks ago and we both noticed that too many students were not wearing their helmets."
About 700 bicyclists died last year. Over 40,000 died in traffic accidents. Think the Holliston Police are targeting the right problem? While it's absolutely a good idea to wear a helmet when riding, it's not a good idea for this to become a matter for the police. Here's what's wrong:
- Bike riders will be a lot safer when local traffic laws are enforced (now there's something for the School Resource Officer to do).
- Targeting kids is consistent with too many laws that target those with little power. Who represented the kids when this law was passed? If Officer Gatchall wants to be consistent, try confiscating a car if the driver is not wearing a seat belt.
- Schools and the police are too cozy. The School Superintendent should be standing with a parent, not the police. Schools and the police should be at arms' length with one another and not casually sharing observations and tacitly offering permission to take highly intrusive action.
- The 'School Resource Officer' is doing what responsible educators used to do: watch the kids, give direction and then - assuming all goes well - get out of the way.
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