Imagine being a middle school student facing arrest. In the 2022-23 school year, authorities arrested 22 Enfield middle school students —sixth through eighth graders—equating to one arrest for every 50 students. Enfield led middle school arrests among 23 larger state communities based on an arrest rate adjusted for enrollments.
This raises serious concerns. A federal lawsuit in Pawtucket, R.I., highlights the consequences of criminalizing students. After a brief fight, police arrested two middle school girls —one Black, one white. The Black girl, an honors student, was handcuffed, photographed, fingerprinted, and held in an adult cell. She filed a lawsuit, claiming Pawtucket violated her right to equal protection. That same year, 57% of student arrests in Pawtucket involved Black students, who made up just 15% of the student population.
U.S. District Court Judge William Smith highlighted the troubling
data, referencing past rulings that stated, “Racially selective law
enforcement violates this nation’s constitutional values at the most
fundamental level.”
Enfield also faces troubling disparities. Our group, Showing Up For
Racial Justice (SURJ) – Enfield chapter, found that the town’s school
board was largely unaware of the issue. When we requested demographic arrest data from the town, they claimed not to have it, but the state provided it. In 2019-20, Black students made up 6.8% of Enfield’s students but 21.6% of arrests. In 2022-23, Hispanic students were 21.6% of the enrollment but 36% of arrests.
Disparate arrest rates alone don’t prove bias. That is why the federal court in Rhode Island is allowing the ACLU additional discovery to see if there is a pattern of racially disparate treatment, meaning whether certain groups are treated differently for similar offenses.
Enfield also stands out for its high arrest rates. In the 2022-23 school year, Enfield arrested 42 students, ranking among the highest in the state and surpassing much larger districts. In contrast, East Hartford, with a significantly larger student population, has dramatically reduced student arrests, reporting zero arrests last year.
In the 2022-23 school year, Waterbury led with 211 arrests, followed by New Britain (58), Enfield (42), Stamford (36), and New Haven (32), according to state EdSight data. Manchester and Meriden, for instance, reported just 14 arrests each in 2022-23. With 19,000 students, Bridgeport reported just six arrests, and Hartford, 17.
Communities with higher arrest rates may be criminalizing adolescent behavior, creating an unequal system of justice within our state.
Enfield this year is placing armed guards in schools managed by the police department. This could exacerbate the problem. The U.S. Government Accountability Office recently reported that arrest rates more than doubled in schools with police compared to those without.
Enfield must also consider demographic arrest data. Enfield is ranked by the state as a Tier 4 town — the worst ranking — joining 19 other communities for high suspension rates and demographic impacts.
Arresting students can have long-lasting, detrimental effects, fueling what’s known as the “school-to-prison pipeline.” It is a well-documented issue where punitive school discipline practices increase the likelihood of students entering the criminal justice
system.
Enfield must reverse course. Our town risks becoming an outlier, particularly with its middle school arrest rates. Failure to address this could lead to litigation, significant costs, and, more importantly, the normalization of student arrests. The town’s failure
to respond to our requests for arrest demographics shows that they’re not paying attention to this issue.
Enfield is at a crossroads. We must prioritize the well-being of our students over punitive measures that could derail their futures. This town can and should do better.
Patrick Thibodeau lives in Enfield.