News stations across the nation have been covering the recent case of a 13-year-old boy’s arrest for interfering with the educational process. What did he do that raised his actions to a criminal level? Well, he repeatedly burped. Who knew being gassy could lead to so much trouble? No, the boy does not have a medical condition or any sort of illness that would result in his need to burp. He was being a class clown and just an overall disruption, but does that mean his actions are criminal? That’s exactly what I researched when I first heard about this story. The incident occurred in another state, but Colorado law has a similar statue. So, wondering if your son or daughter could face criminal charges for something as silly as burping in class in Fort Collins, Loveland, or Estes Park? Let’s look at the statute to find out.
Larimer County Interference with an Educational Institution Lawyer: What is the Definition of Interfering with a School like Colorado State University?
The Colorado law definition of Interference with Staff, Faculty, or Students of Educational Institutions – C.R.S. 18-9-109 – is:
(a) Lawful freedom of movement on the premises;
(b) Lawful use of the property or facilities of the institution;
(c) The right of lawful ingress and egress to the institution’s physical facilities.
(2) No person shall, on the premises of any educational institution or at or in any building or other facility being used by any educational institution, willfully impede the staff or faculty of such institution in the lawful performance of their duties or willfully impede a student of the institution in the lawful pursuit of his educational activities through the use of restraint, abduction, coercion, or intimidation or when force and violence are present or threatened.
(3) No person shall willfully refuse or fail to leave the property of or any building or other facility used by any educational institution upon being requested to do so by the chief administrative officer, his designee charged with maintaining order on the school premises and in its facilities, or a dean of such educational institution, if such person is committing, threatens to commit, or incites others to commit any act which would disrupt, impair, interfere with, or obstruct the lawful missions, processes, procedures, or functions of the institution.
(6) (a) A person shall not knowingly make or convey to another person a credible threat to cause death or to cause bodily injury with a deadly weapon against:
(I) A person the actor knows or believes to be a student, school official, or employee of an educational institution; or
(II) An invitee who is on the premises of an educational institution.
Yes, it’s a long statute, but all-in-all the answer to our above question is no. Fortunately for this particular statute, Colorado lawmakers were more specific in what actually constitutes an interference. It cannot be charged for just disrupting a class. Obviously that does not mean the school can’t take other action like suspension or expulsion for chronic disruptive behavior, but the law does not get to interfere in cases like the one above if it had occurred in Larimer, Boulder, or Grand County.