Unless Gov. Greg Abbott vetoes SB 133, school police will soon be barred from handcuffing or using other restraints on elementary students.
Sanders said she and other advocates would like to have also seen measures pass that hold teachers, principals and other school staff accountable for abusing the use of restraints. Thelma Lira said her preschooler was regularly “tied down to his chair throughout the day.” Jeanna TenBrink said her middle schooler was put face down on the floor with her arms behind her back. Both of their children are autistic.
“These are kids where their wrists are too small to even be put in handcuffs half the time. So, it's a no brainer,” Sanders said. “But in terms of kind of slowing or diverting children away from even more punitive settings where we know it's really hard to come back from, this is a huge step in the right direction.”