Last night, the Tyrone Area School Board approved a proposed zone in Snyder Township near the school, but off campus, that will be patrolled by a school police officer.
TASD and Snyder Township have been working on resolving issues regarding police patrols off campus. Last month, the district held a meeting that was attended by school, township, Tyrone Hospital and Tyrone Borough officials.
During that meeting, the district shared a written opinion from its solicitor, Cynthia Yeager, on the issues of jurisdiction if Tyrone Area school officers are used to patrol the area.
Tyrone Borough was approached at a council meeting earlier in March by Snyder supervisor Buddy Daughenbuagh about supplying manpower for the patrols. The township is looking to have the area near the school including Hospital Road patrolled in the mornings during arrival and in the afternoon during dismissal.
At the time, the borough indicated it could not logistically provide police service during the time period requested and said it lacked manpower to fulfill the request. Daughenbaugh explained to council that the school district would pay for the services. The borough suggested Snyder Township hire a part-time police officer. It also designated a council member to represent the borough at meetings on the issue such as held last month. The proposed area of coverage does not go into Tyrone Borough borders.
Last month, Tyrone Area Superintendent Dr. William N. Miller said, “Our attorney had shared with us that we have statutory authority, which we thought we had five or six years ago.”
He said the district has the authority whether or not the township has a police force provided it enters into an agreement with the township. Currently, Snyder Township does not have its own force, but is covered by the Pennsylvania State Police.
“The school district does have the power to enter into an agreement with Snyder for concurrent jurisdiction,” said Miller. “By the fact that they do not have (a police force) the district would be authorized to exercise police powers within limited geographic areas. We’d have to have a joint concurrent agreement outlining the geographic areas.”
Last night, the school board approved an off-campus zone that is comprised of Hospital Road, the Lego property, the Engelman Florist property and St. Matthew Oak Grove Cemetery. The board’s motion said the proposed areas would be included in a concurrent jurisdiction agreement with Snyder Township to allow school police to monitor the area for loitering and littering. The board’s motion approved the monitoring Monday through Friday between the hours of 7:30 a.m. to 8:15 a.m. and 2:45 p.m. to 3:15 p.m. during the school year.
Last month, Dr. Miller said he didn’t expect the monitoring to go into effect until the beginning of the next school year at the soonest if everything can be worked out. He also said the township would need to pass ordinances related to the issues for it to have any effect in terms of enforcement and punishment.
The district and the township are also working with the Blair County District Attorney’s office to make sure enforcement actions can be upheld in court.
Miller noted a Pittsburgh case regarding whether or not a district police officer had jurisdiction off campus. Miller said in that instance he understood their (the district’s) authority was not upheld because there was no agreement with the district and the municipality.
Last night, Miller informed school board members that Snyder Township officials still need to take action on the issue. He indicated there would be further work done between the school’s attorney and Snyder Township’s. The district is continuing to work with the DA’s office on the matter.
After the meeting, Miller did clarify one point that had been mentioned previously. Officials had planned to consult with the local district magistrate about the jurisdictional and enforceability issues. Last night, Miller said the opinion of a district judge or any other judge would not be used in the process. He explained those judges could later have to rule on a case involving the proposed school zone. Miller indicated having them weigh in on the issue would not be appropriate.
