The Free Press analyzed the emergency call logs of dozens of schools. Here's how it works

A Detroit Free Press data analysis found that special schools with emotional disabilities programs – programs designed for students with severe and challenging behavioral problems – have more frequent police visits and incident logs than nearby traditional public schools.

Advocates say the data suggests that these students with disabilities – some of the most vulnerable in the state – are not getting the appropriate help they need and that schools lack the resources to properly intervene when a student experiences a mental health crisis.

methodology

The analysis looked at police and emergency dispatchers' visits to schools with special, closed emotional distress treatment programs and to nearby regular schools, which are usually within 3 miles of each other. The Free Press requested police reports on some of the records, which described students in crisis situations who faced severe consequences: being handcuffed, stunned with a stun gun or held in the back of a patrol car.