CCSD releases nearly 2,000 pages of details about controversial incident at Durango HS

LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — The Clark County School District just released 1,967 pages of documents related to its response to a controversial incident between county police officers and Durango High School students last year.

It has been more than a year since the February 9, 2023, incident in which a CCSD police officer was caught on video throwing a high school student to the ground, pressing on his neck, and kneeling on his back. The ACLU of Nevada is representing the students in the lawsuit against the district.

On Friday, the CCSD released extensive documents on internal communications surrounding the incident, as well as the subsequent litigation over bodycam footage and other documents requested by the ACLU and media organizations.

“In the spirit of transparency, attached are the documents provided to the ACLU today as part of the public records litigation between the ACLU and CCSD,” CCSD said in an email to media organizations. “Confidential and privileged information has been removed…”

An incident report released earlier this year said officers approached the teens because three of them were wearing gloves and one appeared to be concealing a weapon. Sources had previously told 13 Investigates that the students were walking to a nearby fast-food restaurant where they often go after school.

School police said the incident was prompted by a report of a gun near the school. The ACLU claims there was no gun.

After an extensive legal battle, the district released body-worn camera footage of the encounter in January of this year.

Bodycam footage shows exactly what happened when CCSD police officer knocked a student to the ground

Timeline – How we got here:

February 9, 2023: The incident occurs between CCSD police officers and students.

February 15, 2023: The American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada says it sent a letter to the CCSD informing the district that it is representing two students seen in the video.

February 21, 2023: ACLU attorneys filed a public records request with CCSD for all video footage of the incident, including bodycam footage, photographs, BlueTeam data related to the incident, witness statements, all reports from CCSD staff, all communications from CCSD staff discussing the incident, and all materials discussing discipline, sanctions, or reprimands of CCSD staff and students related to the incident.

March 14, 2023: According to the ACLU, CCSD responded to these requests with a “clear denial, followed by a list of exceptions to confidentiality and no further explanation.” The agency says it asked for clarification.

March 21, 2023: CCSD responded to the ACLU via email, saying the information requested was related to a “pending juvenile criminal case” and therefore could not be released. The district asked ACLU attorneys to obtain their clients’ consent to release the video to the public. The ACLU informed the district that because it represents the students, confidentiality provisions did not apply.

March 27, 2023: ACLU lawyers said CCSD sent another email with a similar response to the March 21 email.

April 18, 2023: The ACLU has filed a lawsuit against the CCSD demanding the release of public records, including bodycam footage.

June 14, 2023: In court documents, CCSD officials deny the allegations, saying they have not attempted or offered to release redacted documents, adding that it will take time to fully review what should and should not be released.

July 11, 2023: Both parties appear in court. Attorneys for the CCSD said they do not believe a serving government agency has an obligation to maintain a public records request once it has been denied. They add that a second request from the ACLU would be extremely burdensome for the district because only one person is in charge of the records.

8 August 2023: In another court hearing, lawyers for the ACLU and CCSD are discussing how to narrow down the email search for thousands of pages related to the incident. The judge ordered that someone from the district’s IT department appear at the next hearing.

31 August and 1 September 2023: Both parties are back in court. A member of the district’s IT department testifies about how staff and teacher emails can be searched and how many documents might be stored on the server. Attorneys discuss access to emails and raise privacy concerns. The court does not address other records requests.

December 18, 2023: A judge in Clark County rules that CCSDPD bodycam footage can be made available to the public.

December 19, 2023: ACLU lawyers are asking the court for additional documents such as emails, possible interviews and records of an internal investigation.

January 18, 2024: Bodycam footage of the incident will be made available to the public.