U.S. Department of Justice Finds St. Louis County Special School District’s Restraint and Seclusion Practices Discriminatory

The United States Department of Justice concluded its years-long investigation into the seclusion and restraint practices of Special School District of St. Louis County, finding that the District’s practices violated Title II of the ADA. The DOJ found that the District treated seclusion and restraint as a routine response to student behavior rather than a last-resort safety measure.

Key Findings

The DOJ based its finding on the frequency and pervasiveness of the use of seclusion and restraint. The District reported secluding over 300 students almost 4,000 times and restraining 150 students 777 times. One district school, with an enrollment of fewer than 100 students, secluded or restrained every one of its students at least once during the investigative period. Individual students experienced extraordinary use of seclusion and restraint, including one student who spent 101 hours combined in seclusion and another student who was restrained 372 times.

The DOJ found that the District violated Missouri law and District policy “routinely and systematically” by employing widespread use of seclusion and restraint without adequate justification such as imminent danger of physical harm, for student noncompliance, verbal conduct, and other minor behavior infractions. The District frequently continued seclusion of students long after the resolution of any imminent danger, sometimes for hours as determined arbitrarily by timers rather than a live safety assessment of the situation. The District also routinely implemented seclusion in cases of student self-harm or suicidal ideation, which reportedly exacerbated those behaviors and led to severe incidents requiring emergency response.

The DOJ also identified unsanitary and harmful conditions present during student seclusion with little to no intervention by staff, including bleeding, urination, defecation, vomiting, and other trauma responses to isolation without access to bathroom facilities. The District also used dangerous supine restraints over 400 times, sometimes without justification of imminent danger and contrary to safer alternatives.

Despite the “staggeringly high” numbers described in the DOJ’s findings, the DOJ, having relied on the District’s self-reporting, suspects massive underreporting based on discrepancies between data sheets and incident reports provided by the District.

The DOJ concluded that the District failed to provide necessary student interventions by relying on outdated or missing Functional Behavior Assessments, generalized Behavior Intervention Plans, and lacking plans for student elopement. The District moved some students to shortened schedules or homebound placement without added behavioral services.

In general, the District did not implement proper oversight and record-keeping practices, which resulted in a failure to internally address the pattern of improper seclusion and restraint and led to delayed parent notification and reports lacking required details.

Legal Conclusion

Ultimately, the DOJ found that the District’s practices violated federal regulations by excluding students with disabilities from services, increasing the risk of harm to students, and by failing to make reasonable modifications by not using established behavioral techniques rather than relying on seclusion, restraint, and reduced instructional time. See 42 U.S.C. § 12132; 28 C.F.R. § 35.130(a); and 28 C.F.R. § 35.130(b)(7).

Required Remedial Measures

The DOJ directed the District to:

1. End its use of seclusion and supine restraint
2. Permit restraint only when there is imminent danger of physical harm.
3. Implement suicide and self-harm prevention policies.
4. Document, review, and monitor all restraints for legal compliance.
5. Provide sufficient interventions, update BIPs based on FBAs after any restraint, and create elopement plans.
6. Ensure prompt parent notification and effective complaint processes.
7. Prevent loss of instructional time through unjustified shortened schedules or early pickups.
8. Provide compensatory education and counseling for harm and lost time.
9. Train staff to comply with law and meet student needs.

Key Takeaways

While Illinois school districts have long focused on safe use of seclusion and restraint, there are some takeaways even for the most compliant school districts. One is the critique of shortened schedules and early pickups. These interventions should not replace in-school interventions. Similarly, the DOJ linked suicide and self-harm prevention with reduction of unnecessary seclusion and restraint, which is not currently a focus of RTO policies in Illinois. For support on these issues, consult the Thought Leadership tab of this website or any Franczek attorney.