An Act To Protect School Children from Dangerous or Abusive Restraint and Seclusion

Sec. 1. 20-A MRSA §4009, sub-§1-A  is enacted to read:

Sec. 2. 20-A MRSA §7211  is enacted to read:

§ 7211.  Physical restraint or seclusion

summary

This bill addresses the use of physical restraint or isolation. The bill amends the law that suspends civil liability for anyone in the educational system entrusted with the care or supervision of a person for special or limited purposes using a reasonable degree of force. The bill adds a provision that allows civil liability for an unreasonable degree of force evidenced by a violation of rules of the Department of Education regulating the use of time-out rooms, therapeutic restraints and aversive therapy. The bill also establishes a violation of such a rule as grounds for a due process hearing if the action is against a child with a disability. The bill further prohibits a physical restraint against a child with a disability in which the child's face contacts the floor while a person applies pressure to the child's back.