The Santa Ana School Police Officers Association released a statement hammering the woke SAUSD School Board for failing to protect our students and public schools, in the wake of the stabbing death of a student by another student at Santa Ana High School. The Santa Ana School Police Officers Association is devastated by the recent apparent gang related stabbing amongst students occurring on May 7, 2025, at Santa Ana High School. Regrettably, this appears to be due to the majority of the SAUSD’s Board of Education’s intentional decision to defund the School Police by not providing its Police Department with the proper tools, staffing, and resources to deter matters like this from occurring. In August 2023, this Association wrote to the SAUSD Board of Education stating, “School Police Department is at a critical juncture and is rapidly reaching a point where the safety of officers, faculty, employees, and most importantly, the students, will be jeopardized.” The letter added that while the District is slotted for 33 sworn officers in the field available to protect and serve, in reality, due to departures and normal hiring replacements, the District is actually at 19 sworn officers. Any department that operates at 46% below its regular staffing level will suffer. The letter identified that “the danger is particularly elevated when the critical service level provided involves the protection and safety of lives and property.” The letter went on to identify other examples of how the Board has not met its obligation in maintaining a safe environment for students, faculty and employees. While the Board continues to travel the country attending paid conferences, they have failed to keep our students safe at home. After that letter, and today, School Police are now down to 14 officers in the field. The list of outdated and un-serviced equipment, including police vehicles, is growing. The District has stalled on basic repairs to keep officers in a position to protect. The Board defunded the OC Grip Program recently, which was a collaborative effort and program throughout the County with the goal of preventing minors from participating in gang activity. OC Grip works closely ,with non-profit organizations that shelter children and supports victims. Although the program operates in 62 schools county-wide, it was defunded by the SAUSD.
The School Board has chosen not to maintain a relationship with its School Police Department, according to our information, has refused to contact the Police Chief to inquire about safety issues and concerns. Our information is that the Board has only met with the Police Chief one time, spanning over the last few years. Attempts to fill critical officer vacancies are placed on the agenda, with new hires given start dates, only to have the Board pull the matter from the agenda, stalling our attempts to hire. The School Police are doing everything in their power to provide and maintain exceptional
service to their community all while having their budget and resources stripped away. The Santa Ana School Police Department remains committed to protecting students, faculty and staff, as well as the community. Our officers are stakeholders; they live and work in the area they serve. Our Association believes the public deserves transparency and a full accounting of how this preventable failure unfolded. It is apparent the Board is not upholding its end of the bargain to maintain safety throughout the district. These critical failures undoubtedly lead to events like those occurring on May 7, 2025.
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The School Board has chosen not to maintain a relationship with its School Police Department, according to our information, has refused to contact the Police Chief to inquire about safety issues and concerns. Our information is that the Board has only met with the Police Chief one time, spanning over the last few years. Attempts to fill critical officer vacancies are placed on the agenda, with new hires given start dates, only to have the Board pull the matter from the agenda, stalling our attempts to hire. The School Police are doing everything in their power to provide and maintain exceptional
service to their community all while having their budget and resources stripped away. The Santa Ana School Police Department remains committed to protecting students, faculty and staff, as well as the community. Our officers are stakeholders; they live and work in the area they serve. Our Association believes the public deserves transparency and a full accounting of how this preventable failure unfolded. It is apparent the Board is not upholding its end of the bargain to maintain safety throughout the district. These critical failures undoubtedly lead to events like those occurring on May 7, 2025.
