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SALT LAKE CITY — A high school-age constituent of Rep. Ashlee Matthews was sexually assaulted by a classmate and received notice that the perpetrator would reintegrate into her high school with only a day's warning.
The student, a senior at the time, opted to finish her last year of high school from home because she felt unsafe in the halls of the school, according to Matthews.
"They got an email the night before just saying, 'Hey ... it's been six weeks since he's been in this alternative placement program and he'll be back at school tomorrow. Try to avoid him in the halls. If you have any problems, talk to your counselor.' And that was it," Matthews, D-West Jordan, recounted to KSL.com on Monday.
Her constituent's story prompted Matthews to run HB418, which requires school districts to create a process for reintegrating student offenders and prevents a student from being reintegrated into a school where "a school or staff member is the victim of a sexual crime committed by the student being reintegrated."
"We want to keep the school safe for everybody," Matthews said. "Luckily, there are a lot of alternative routes that these offenders can take. If they have victims that don't feel safe having them back in the same school, then they can go to another school. If they're in a rural town where there isn't a nearby school, they can do packets, they can do online school; there are options."
"It shouldn't be the victim that's having to make all these arrangements," she added.
While the bill has moved unanimously through the House and a Senate committee, it wasn't without opposition. Education attorneys spoke against the bill in committee, and Pamela Vickery, executive director of Utah Juvenile Defender Attorneys, said she's concerned that the measure is too "broad" when it outlines consequences for students who engage in violence.
Vickery said the bill could require suspension or expulsion for students who engage in violence, which she said could include instances where students are in a minor altercation.
Lawmakers from rural parts of Utah also expressed concern that the bill would leave rural offenders with few options if there are no alternative schools to enroll in nearby.
When it comes to violence committed by students, Matthews said HB418 only applies in instances of violence when schools have escalated the situation and charges may be filed — not ordinary fights that may be handled by individual teachers or principals.
HB418 is awaiting a vote on the Senate floor, and Sen. Mike McKell, R-Spanish Fork, has proposed an amendment to say that school districts "shall consider if reintegration of a student is appropriate into a school," in cases of sexual assault or if another student has a protective order. That amendment would replace current language that states "a school district may not reintegrate a student into a school where a student or staff member has a protective order against the student," or in cases where a sexual assault victim attends the same school.
McKell's amendment has yet to be adopted, but the Senate Education Committee seemed amenable to it when it discussed the bill on Wednesday.
When asked about the amendment or other potential changes to the bill, Matthews said she wants to allow school districts flexibility, "but I don't think that we should be, in any way, shape or form, compromising the whole intent."
If the policy isn't perfect, she said she would rather err on the side of giving too much protection to victims before considering future changes, rather than the other way around.
