Supt.: School cops must be trained to search female students

By L.A. PARKER
Staff Writer
TRENTON — Superintendent of Schools Rodney Lofton yesterday called for better searches of girls at the city high school, where a girl pulled a knife from her bra and went after a rival last week.

Searches have been “a little lax,” Lofton said, because security officers are perplexed by what to do if a girl touches off the metal detectors at the school entry. He said the security force will be trained in how to search a girl without violating her and what to do if someone touches off the detector alarm.

His comments came after a press conference at Trenton Central High, which saw both females taken into custody last week because the second girl grabbed a pair of scissors to defend herself.

Lofton said keeping Trenton High students safe is a difficult challenge, but promised stepped up efforts to prevent violence like the knife-vs.-scissors battle in a school corridor last week.

“We can’t watch the 93 doors of this building with just 17 security officers, so we’re going to have to rely on the cameras that we have and more that will be installed,” Lofton said.

“Plus, we’re going to have to depend on the entire staff and students as well. We need their eyes and ears. We need the support of everybody.”

Lofton promised better security on every front, including more scrutiny for female students who offer special challenges for searches.

Retired city cop Howard White, director of the school security force, also said “lax” security procedures allowed the 16-year-old student to enter Trenton High with a knife.

Howard promised a reprimand for security officers who did not follow search procedures, which mandate daily security scanning of every students entering the school.

In the coming weeks, according to Lofton, all security staff will be trained to operate a high-tech Magna scanner for better detection of contraband.

Principal Elizabeth Ramirez told a Trenton High PTA crowd Tuesday that the district’s security force will have supplemental training on search and seizure procedures for students and property during a staff in-service this month.

Increased random searches of classrooms and lockers along with hall sweeps will commence immediately. Lofton promised a safe environment to facilitate better opportunity for learning.

“We’re going to keep schools safe and secure, continue to make this our No. 1 priority,” Lofton said.

White said he intends a city-wide crackdown on safety violators: “We’re going to investigate bookbags, clothing, oversized pants. Everything. We have a right to do it. We’re going to make schools safe and make sure that our security officers follow our procedure policy to a T.”
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