JCPS records show hundreds of arrests by district's police force in recent years

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Data shows Jefferson County Public Schools police officers have made hundreds of arrests as the district's police department has grown and expanded its presence in schools.

JCPS Police Chief Todd Kessinger said visibility and consistency are key to school safety.

"When the students come to school in the morning, there is a uniformed officer standing there when they come in," Kessinger said.

At Butler Traditional High School, School Resource Officer Shawn Boerste patrols the halls. He is one of 72 JCPS police officers, all of whom wear body cameras. Kessinger said he thinks school is the "safest place for our students," arguing that things happen our in the community rather than in the school building.

After three years, Kessinger said his team of officers is finally built out with real data on school arrests. That data, provided by the district, shows the schools which reported the highest numbers of crimes over the last three school years.

Records show JCPS Police started with 15 officers and added more each year. The department's operating budget was just over $728,000 for its first two school years and then increased to $801,000 for the current school year. JCPS said the operating budget doesn't include officer salaries.

When I was hired, a lot of it follows state mandate for what we needed to do get in compliance with the school marshal office and some of the laws that had been passed," Kessinger said.

With JCPS facing a major budget shortfall, Kessinger acknowledged funding concerns.

"You're always concerned about budgets," he said. "We'll work through it. Whatever we're told, we'll make it work."

When asked about youth violence in the community, Kessinger said students have been impacted outside of school.

"We've been affected by our students who have been victims," he said. "We've had students arrested — 10 students that were arrested with non-fatal shootings and a couple that have been charged with murder. But what I see is that stuff happens outside of school."

Arrest records for JCPS Police show officers made 130 arrests during the 2023-24 school year. Ballard High School recorded the highest number, with 17 arrests for charges including drugs, fighting and assault.

For the last school year, JCPS Police made 64 arrests. Ballard, Iroquois and Pleasure Ridge Park high schools each reported six arrests for offenses such as assault, terroristic threatening and robbery.

Kessinger said declining arrest numbers reflect increased prevention.

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When you look at the amount of weapons that have been in the school over the last three years, I think the consistency of having a uniformed officer there and the students know and the schools know we're there to support them," Kessinger said.

Through November of this school year, JCPS data showed officers made 17 arrests.

School resource officers are assigned to multiple nearby schools, which has raised concerns among some parents about response times. When asked about those concerns, Boerste said officers are nearby and "fairly close to assist."

"If a true emergency exists, I've seen it when the first officers are on scene in less than a minute," Kessinger said.

The JCPS Police Department also has four K-9s who can check lockers for explosives, drugs and guns. The department also has a therapy dog.

"What's special about those dogs, compared to other agencies, (is they) haven't been through any patrol work or any kind of bite work," Kessinger said, meaning they're approachable around the school.

Boerste previously worked in financial crimes at Louisville Metro Police, and Kessinger has decades of law enforcement experience.

"Kessinger began his career as a firefighter in the City of Louisville in 1994," his biography on the JCPS website reads. "He transitioned into law enforcement in 1998 when he joined the Louisville Police Department. Kessinger served in multiple police capacities, including patrol, investigations, supervision, and tactical support. He worked in the Homicide, Robbery, SWAT, and Special Events units while with LMPD. Kessinger worked his way up the ranks, retiring from LMPD in April 2019 as the Major of the Major Crimes Division."

Asked about the transition from policing adults to working with students, Kessinger said differing opinions are the biggest challenge.

"I think the biggest challenge is the question when I talk to groups," he said. "We talk about it: 'Do you want police in the schools or not?' That opinion varies. Does every school need a uniformed police officer in it? I think that's the biggest challenge — navigating opinions of that."

Boerste said his daily presence helps build trust with students. He works the Evolv weapon detection system each morning at Butler.

"I want them to approach me and know I'm here for their safety," he said.

Kessinger said working as a JCPS police officer is far from a low-risk role.

"Lower stress? Maybe. Retirement job? Absolutely not," he said. "If you look around the country and some of the things that happened in Uvalde, it's not a retirement job. There are retirement jobs out there, and this is not one of those."

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