In Wicomico County on Maryland's Eastern Shore, the practice of handcuffing and transporting students to the hospital for psychiatric evaluations has become alarmingly frequent. According to data obtained from public records requests to the Wicomico County Sheriff's Office, this process has been used on students at least 750 times over the past eight years, with some students as young as 5 years old. While the state law allowing for these removals, known as petitions for emergency evaluation, is intended for individuals with severe mental illness who pose a danger to themselves or others, advocates argue that schools are misusing it in response to behaviors triggered by bullying or frustration over assignments.

Advocates also point out that black students and students with disabilities are disproportionately subjected to these removals. Available data shows that black children make up more than half of the students who are handcuffed and sent to the emergency room, despite only representing a little over a third of the Wicomico public school population. This disparity highlights the issue of schools focusing on removing students rather than providing them with the necessary support.

Wicomico County agreed to refrain from misusing emergency petitions as part of a 2017 settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice. However, while suspensions and expulsions decreased, the number of mandated trips to the emergency room increased. Last year alone, at least 117 children were handcuffed and sent to the hospital from Wicomico schools, with 40% of them being 12 years old or younger.

Numerous accounts from students, parents, educators, lawyers, and advocates for students with disabilities in Wicomico County shed light on the lack of resources, trained staff, and punitive culture in some schools that contribute to the misuse of emergency petitions. One mother described the fear she felt when her son's school informed her that they were going to forcibly hospitalize him for a psychiatric evaluation. When she arrived at the school, her son was already in handcuffs, and he was placed in the back of a police car and taken to the hospital. This mother emphasizes that her son's outburst was rooted in frustration, not mental illness, and that the school's response was an attempt to remove him from the school rather than providing the necessary support.

Unfortunately, Wicomico is not the only place where this practice occurs. Recent data shows that New York City schools continue to call the police to take emotionally distressed children to the emergency room, despite a 2014 legal settlement prohibiting this practice. A Kentucky school district was found to have used psychiatric assessments on children over 1,000 times in one year. Thousands of school-aged children in Florida have been subjected to the state's involuntary commitment statute, known as the Baker Act.

Wicomico County uses emergency petitions more frequently per capita than almost every other Maryland district with available data. For example, Baltimore City had 271 emergency petitions from schools last year, compared to Wicomico's at least 117. However, Baltimore's student population is five times larger than Wicomico's. This raises questions about why Wicomico's rate of emergency petitions is significantly higher.

Parents in Wicomico describe struggling to obtain support for their children when they fall behind on basic skills like reading and math in the early grades. These learning gaps can lead to frustration and challenging behaviors for teachers to manage. The mother whose son was handcuffed shared her experience of fighting with administrators for years to obtain accommodations for her autistic son, who also has ADHD. By the time he reached middle school, he was several years behind in reading. The mother believes that the school's decision to send her son to the hospital was motivated by a desire to remove him from the school rather than addressing his needs.

The Wicomico County Public Schools spokeswoman stated that emergency petitions are only used in the most extreme, emergency situations where the student's life or safety is at risk. However, parents, teachers, and community leaders argue that the district focuses more on keeping suspension numbers down than providing support for teachers to prevent disruptive behavior. They believe that more training and resources are needed to handle and deal with behaviors effectively.

The misuse of emergency petitions highlights the lack of accountability and transparency in many schools across the country. Most places do not routinely collect data on removals from school for psychiatric assessments, making it difficult to hold schools accountable for their actions. Without this data, it is more likely that black students and students with disabilities will be subjected to biases that deny them an educational opportunity.

In Wicomico County, the settlement with the Justice Department in 2017 aimed to reduce racial and disability-related disparities in suspensions and placements in alternative schools. The district agreed not to use emergency petitions as a disciplinary tool or to address lack of compliance with directions. However, since the settlement, the number of emergency petitions has increased, along with other forms of exclusionary discipline, such as school arrests.

The lack of resources for students with disabilities is a widespread issue across the country. In Maryland's Eastern Shore, limited resources and geographical constraints restrict the range of alternatives available for students with disabilities. Private out-of-district placements and specialized classrooms for specific needs are often not accessible, leaving families and students with few options.

It is clear that there is a pressing need for schools to shift their focus from punitive measures to providing comprehensive support for students. This includes increasing resources, training, and interventions to address behavioral concerns and prevent the misuse of emergency petitions. The civil rights of children, particularly black students and students with disabilities, are at stake, and it is crucial to address these disparities to ensure equal educational opportunities for all.