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WUWM's Emily Files reports on education in southeastern Wisconsin.

Kenoshans ask for changes after school knee restraint incident, board silent for now

school lunchroom security footage
KUSD
In KUSD security footage from March 4, security guard and off-duty officer Shawn Guetschow is seen restraining a 12-year-old girl with his knee. The girl was fighting with another students when Guetschow intervened.

The Kenosha Unified School District board heard a range of community reactions Tuesday night to an incident that has drawn national attention.

A KUSD security guard and off-duty police officer was caught on video restraining a 12-year-old girl by putting his knee on her neck for more than 20 seconds. The girl had been fighting with another student when Shawn Guetschow intervened.

Guetschow resigned from his job at Lincoln Middle School, but that hasn’t quelled fury over the incident.

During the first regular school board meeting since the March 4 Lincoln Middle School incident, none of the board members spoke about it.

But the community did. Alvin Owens, who runs a local youth nonprofit, said it was unacceptable that some Kenoshans seem more upset about mask mandates than this. KUSD dropped its mask requirement last week.

"Last meeting there was more talk about masks than the officer who knelt on the neck of a 12-year-old female student who also happens to be Black," Owens said. "Kenosha would have flipped upside down had this happened to a white child, male or female. Instead we saw the same old, same old comments placing blame on a Black youth and the community she comes from."

Dominique Pritchett called for the school district to better serve students of color by addressing disproportionate discipline. As a therapist, she said students have been talking to her about how they’re processing the Lincoln incident.

"Our Black and brown girls don’t feel seen, safe or supported to go to school," Pritchett said. "If our children are dysregulated, it interrupts their entire system. But we expect our children to sit down virtually or in-person and abide by rules, be a number and follow suit when adults are not even leading by example."

Activists from Burlington and Milwaukee also spoke, and called for KUSD to end contracts with the police department.

KUSD didn’t immediately provide its police contracts for this story. But according to budget documents, the district is spending more than $300,000 this year on security and police.

Because of possible legal action, the district has declined to answer questions about whether it plans to make changes to its staffing, policies or procedures.

Some residents spoke in favor of keeping contracts for school resource officers, including Robert Tierney.

"Do we not want officers who choose to work with young people?" Tierney said. "Who walk the halls and school grounds throughout the day? Who serve as role models and build trust so they can stem disputes before they escalate? Student and teacher safety should be a top priority for KUSD. Parents should not worry about violence when they drop their children off at school."

Another speaker, Bill Weathersby, said he works at Tremper High School and supports SROs.

"I can tell on record, if SROs get pulled, I will no longer be working in the district," Weathersby said. "It can’t be done."

Weathersby said the responsibility for what happened at Lincoln Middle School should be on the girl’s parents.

The girl’s father, Jerrel Perez, spoke to the media last week, saying his daughter is traumatized and receiving medical treatment for her injuries. He is calling for criminal charges against Guetschow, who is still employed by the police department.

Residents’ reactions to the Lincoln Middle School incident could play a role in the upcoming school board election April 5. Speakers at Tuesday’s meeting repeatedly urged people to vote.

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Emily is WUWM's education reporter and a news editor.
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