School resource officers in MPS; the next steps
The Brief
A judge ordered that Milwaukee Public Schools and the City of Milwaukee must split the cost of putting school resource officers in schools.
The two sides now have nine days to get SROs in schools.
Milwaukee Police Association President Alexander Ayala doesn't think much will change.
MILWAUKEE - Nine days and counting, that's how long the City of Milwaukee and Milwaukee Public Schools have to get school resource officers back in the schools.
What we know
This order came down on Monday, Feb. 17, after Milwaukee County Judge David Borowski ordered MPS and the city to split the cost of school resource officers 50-50.
The backstory
It stems back to 2023, when Gov. Tony Evers signed a law that allowed the city to implement a sales tax. Part of the deal required MPS to put 25 school resource officers in schools by last January.
A parent sued when that didn't happen.
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Now negotiations are underway where the city and MPS will have to agree on a memorandum of understanding, which will lay out the details of what's next.
What they're saying
Milwaukee Police Association President Alexander Ayala doesn't think much will change.
Ayala said there was already an SRO system in place from 2016 to 2020 and expects things to be implemented in the same way.
"No police officer is going to be occupying any MPS school," he said. "A school calls and instead of having someone from a district respond to the school, you'll have one of these SROs respond to the school, take care of the call, and then they're gone."
Ayala said MPD already responds to more than a thousand calls a year to MPS, so they are trained in dealing with schools and kids.
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"I think now with this clear decision from the judge, MPD can get clear direction on how to proceed forward once this little battle between the city and MPS is settled," he said.
What's next
If the city and MPS don't comply, they could face contempt and fines. Both say they are prepared to comply with the court order.
The Source
FOX6 News utilized an interview with Milwaukee Police Association President Alexander Ayala and prior coverage for this report.
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