Emergency/interventions.

• • Emergency means a situation in which immediate intervention involving the use of reasonable physical force (see above bullet points) is necessary.

Use of emergency interventions

• • Emergency interventions shall be used only in situations in which alternative procedures and methods not involving the use of physical force cannot reasonably be employed.
  • Emergency interventions shall not be used as a punishment or as a substitute for systematic behavioral interventions that are designed to change, replace, modify or eliminate a targeted behavior.
  • Staff training. Staff who may be called upon to implement emergency interventions shall be provided with appropriate training in safe and effective restraint procedures.
  • Documentation. The school must maintain documentation on the use of emergency interventions for each student….
  • Applicability. For an education program operated pursuant to section 112 of the Education Law and Part 116 of this Title, if a provision of this section relating to emergency interventions conflicts with the rules of the respective State agency operating such program, the rules of such State agency shall prevail and the conflicting provision of this section shall not apply.

New York City School Regulations Regarding Restraint

A-420: Regulation of the Chancellor: Pupil Behavior and Discipline – Corporal Punishment

• NYC Prohibits the use of corporal punishment.  Corporal punishment does not include the use of reasonable physical force for any of the following purposes:
  • To protect oneself from physical injury;
  • To protect another pupil or teacher or any other person from physical injury (e.g. breaking up a physical altercation without using excessive force);
  • To protect the property of the school or of others; or
  • To restrain or remove a pupil whose behavior is interfering with the orderly exercise and performance of school district functions, powers, or duties if the pupil refuses to comply with a request to refrain from further disruptive acts, and alternative procedures and methods that do not involve the use of physical force cannot reasonably be employed to achieve the purposes set forth above.

Disclaimer. Nothing in this post is intended to create an attorney client relationship.  Nothing written or spoken constitutes legal advice and should not be used as a substitute for obtaining legal advice. There may be additional laws, rules, policies applicable to the use of restraint and force in your state. The above is an overview of information compiled from individual sources that are maintained and
updated with varying frequencies. While we attempt to keep the information current, readers should read the source information directly,  go to the source to check for updates or conduct further research.  For information and/or legal advice, consult with your attorney or States Attorney General.