School resource officer on leave for using Taser to wake sleeping student
SMITHVILLE, Ohio Sept 7 2018– A school resource officer has come under fire after using a Taser to wake up a sleeping high school student, according to WJW.
When a junior fell asleep in class on Aug. 30 at Liberty Preparatory School, the teacher and Interim Principal Jenna Parnell tried to wake him up, both unsuccessfully.
That’s when officer Maryssa Boskoski, 32, a part-time school resource officer, had an idea.
“It was just an attempt to wake him up,” Parnell told The Alliance Review. Boskoski “just pulled (the taser) out and pushed the button to make the sound.”
The Taser never physically touched the student, but the sparking noise and reaction from the class were enough to wake the student.
“She did take her Taser, remove the cartridge from it, and arced the Taser,” Smithville Police Chief Howard Funk confirmed to WEWS.
Boskoski was placed on unpaid leave after the incident.
“I was a little surprised by it,” Parnell said to WEWS. “Our interest is in the safety of our students, so hearing that go off was a little alarming.”
The police chief will meet with the village solicitor to determine if criminal charges should be filed.
According to Funk, the officer violated use of Taser policy, which could cost Boskoski her job.
Earlier in 2018, Boskoski reportedly neglected to take out the cartridge from a Taser before conducting a spark test, causing the Taser to deploy near another officer, WEWS reports. She was told then that another similarly-negligent incident could mean disciplinary action.
