By Jill Harmacinski
Staff Writer
July 27, 2008 06:00 am LAWRENCE — Arrests at Lawrence High School jumped this year — an increase that alarms police and teachers — but school officials say is a reflection of improved security measures and the larger campus at the new, $110 million school. Police made 81 arrests and issued 59 criminal summonses last year at Lawrence High, up from 77 arrests and 48 summonses during the 2006-2007 school year. The majority of the arrests were for violent assaults and narcotics violations, police said. Police Chief John Romero called the increase "unacceptable" and said it shows a need for a heightened police presence at the high school and better communication with administrators and teachers. But School Committee member Peter Larocque said he wasn't surprised the figures went up this year. He pointed to improved record keeping and security measures at the high school as driving factors behind the rise in arrests. The new high school, which opened in September, has more than 300 surveillance cameras and a dozen civilian school safety officers. "Because of the cameras and the security system, our response time is much better," said Larocque, chairman of the school's public safety committee. "We'd almost expect a slight increase." School safety manager Kevin Clement said he needs to see a more thorough breakdown of the arrests before he can actually say the numbers are up. The old high school was located within a city block, but the new school encompasses 41 acres along Route 114, near the Stadium Projects and Sullivan Park. And some of the arrests were made off school grounds. "I'm not sure these numbers actually show an increase," said Clement, who oversees security at all city schools. "We expected a bump because we have a bigger campus." Like Larocque, he also pointed to the school's sophisticated surveillance system and roving safety officers. "It's a safer environment," he said. "With the cameras, it's a lot harder to get away with things."
Teachers: Problem isn't being addressed Teachers at the school aren't convinced that the increased arrests are a result of improved security or a bigger patrol area. No matter where it is located, Lawrence High is still an inner-city school with an inadequate police presence, said Frank McLaughlin, president of the 975-member Lawrence Teachers Union. "It's an old problem in a new building. ... It's an ongoing problem the administration refuses to address," said McLaughlin, who has taught at Lawrence High for 29 years. "We have some serious problems that warrant attention from police." He recalls several violent incidents at the school last year, including one where a girl attacked another female student, literally pulling clumps of hair from her scalp. In another instance, a student sucker-punched another boy and the boy fell down a flight of stairs. "Kids and teachers came to me shaking," McLaughlin said. "They're afraid." He e-mailed School Superintendent Wilfredo Laboy in late April asking if the issue of school violence could be addressed at an upcoming faculty meeting. He received a reply from Laboy, who said he found the tone of the e-mail "rather offensive" and said he would not tolerate anyone making "demands of our leadership." McLaughlin said he wasn't surprised. When it comes to school crime, he said, "we are not addressing the problem. We are hiding the problem." Laboy did not return calls seeking comment for this story. Clement said the superintendent was out of town and had asked him to respond instead.
'Team effort' needed The end-of-year report on school crime was generated by the Police Department earlier this month. There were 118 arrests last year in the Lawrence public schools — 81 at the high school and 37 at the city's 21 elementary and middle schools. At the high school, 60 students were arrested on campus and 21 others were charged at dismissal time in Sullivan Park and the neighboring Stadium Projects. The report noted while that's "not actually on school property, they were within a block of the school and considered school related because they were actively dismissing from LHS." Lt. Sean Burke, who oversees the Police Department's school resource officers, said the arrests represent serious incidents. "This wasn't just pushing your girlfriend in the hallway," he said. Gang activity continues to be a pervasive problem at the high school, with newer gangs that represent certain neighborhoods growing. "We are tracking them more closely now and working with the gang unit," Burke said. Romero believes police and school leaders should develop a comprehensive plan "to bring these numbers down." The School Department "is going to have to work with us. It's got to be a team effort. If we want to reduce those numbers, we have to see what's causing it." He's also trying to find grant money to pay for a police investigator's position for Lawrence High School. Putting a second officer at the high school would give the school resource officer more time to focus on his primary role, crime prevention and outreach. The Police Department now has one school resource officer assigned to the high school while the other two rove among the elementary and middle schools. "We are spread very thin with our public schools," Burke said. Larocque said he would support having another police officer at the high school. "We are very police friendly, if that's what the police would like to see," he said. "I think the superintendent and School Committee would go along with that." But Clement isn't sure that another police officer is necessary. He wants to see a thorough breakdown of the 21 arrests made off Lawrence High property that are included in the police crime report. He also wants a more in-depth look at arrests and summonses from 2006-2007. "They are all lumped together," Clement said. "I'd like to see true and accurate numbers."
New school, same old problems A year ago, the school crime figures that were released were the "worst police had ever seen," Romero said. Those figures were blamed, in part, on the fact that students were attending high school in a tired, obsolete building and subjected to double sessions and various dismissal times, the chief said. The old high school, on Lawrence Street, was overcrowded and "there was a lot of tension," agreed Mayor Michael Sullivan, Lawrence School Committee chairman. But he said this latest crime report troubles him. With the cameras, technology and security measures in place, "I thought that would lead to a calmer school," the mayor said. "I have a lot of questions in my mind that are swirling around over the number of arrests made," Sullivan said. "Nothing is better for learning than feeling you are in a safe environment." Police stressed that those arrested represent a small percentage of Lawrence High's 3,000 students. "Most of the kids are good kids who come to school every day and want to learn," Romero said.
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Lawrence High School arrests Year Arrests Criminal summonses Total 2006-07 77 48 125 2007-08 81 59 140
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