The Special School District in St. Louis County will no longer use seclusion and supine restraints on its students after a federal investigation found it was violating the American with Disabilities Act.
A supine restraint is when an individual is laid on his or her back, and two staffers hold down the arms and legs to stop movement. Seclusion is when a student is taken out of a classroom and isolated from other students and staff. Both practices should be used only in a limited capacity, according to the U.S. Department of Education.
The U.S. Department of Justice found the district routinely violated its own policies and Missouri law when it relied on seclusion and restraint as a regular practice, rather than a final resort, according to a letter sent to the district in February.
