House panel to study ‘disturbing schools’ law

A legislative panel set to discuss the merits of a House bill that addresses the state’s controversial “Disturbing Schools” law opted to conduct a study instead.

Members of a House panel said Thursday that because a Senate bill is already in the works, they’d rather seek the opinions of experts on the law. The bill’s author, Rep. Leola Robinson-Simpson, D-Greenville, said the effort would better prepare the panel for when the Senate bill makes it to the House.

Robinson-Simpson said the study is needed because the law has divided communities, especially in Richland County, where a former officer was taped attempting to arrest a teen under the disturbing schools law.

“Some look at what that police officer did to that young lady, when he drug her out of that desk, as being part of his job,” Robinson-Simpson said. “Others see it as being brutality.”

This story was originally published February 16, 2017 at 12:08 PM with the headline "House panel to study ‘disturbing schools’ law."