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Tenn. Code Ann. § 49-10-1305

Restrictions on administration of, or use of, isolation or restraint

Applied in 2 court decisions — leading case 257 F. Supp. 3d 946 - I.L. ex rel. Taylor v. Knox County Board of Education (2017)

Most recently applied in J.M. By & Through Mata v. Tn Dept. Of Educ. (December 2018)

Acts 2008, ch. 1063, § 5; 2011, ch. 457, §§ 9-11.

(1) Administering a chemical restraint to a student receiving special education services, as defined by § 49-10-102, is prohibited; provided, that nothing in this subsection (a) shall prohibit the administration of a chemical restraint when administered for therapeutic purposes under the direction of a physician and with the child's parent or guardian's consent to administer such chemical restraint.

(2) Administering a noxious substance to a student receiving special education services, as defined by § 49-10-102, is prohibited.

(3) The use of any mechanical restraint on any student receiving special education services, as defined by § 49-10-102, is prohibited.

(4) Any form of life threatening restraint, including restraint that restricts the flow of air into a person's lungs, whether by chest compression or any other means, to a student receiving special education services, as defined by § 49-10-102, is prohibited.

(5) The use of isolation or physical holding restraint as a means of coercion, punishment, convenience or retaliation on any student receiving special education services, as defined by § 49-10-102, is prohibited.

(6) Removing or disabling any equipment or device that a student requires, including, but not limited to, a power wheelchair, brace, augmentative communication device, or walker, as a means of coercion, punishment, convenience, or retaliation on any student receiving special education services, as defined by § 49-10-102, is prohibited.

(7) The use of physical holding restraint in the following circumstances is not prohibited: The brief holding by an adult in order to calm or comfort;

(8) The minimum contact necessary to physically escort a student from one area to another;

(9) Assisting a student in completing a task or response if the student does not resist, or resistance is minimal in intensity or duration; or

(10) Holding a student for a brief time in order to prevent any impulsive behavior that threatens the student's immediate safety.

(11) The school is not required to notify the student's parent or guardian pursuant to § 49-10-1304 in any of the circumstances listed in subdivision (e)(3)(A).

(12) The use of a locked door, or any physical structure, mechanism, or device that substantially accomplishes the function of locking a student in a room, structure, or area, is prohibited.

(13) Any space used as an isolation room shall be: Unlocked and incapable of being locked;

(14) Free of any condition that could be a danger to the student;

(15) Well ventilated and temperature controlled;

(16) Sufficiently lighted for the comfort and well-being of the student;

(17) Where school personnel are in continuous direct visual contact with the student at all times;

(18) At least forty square feet (40 sq. ft.); and

(19) In compliance with all applicable state and local fire, health, and safety codes.

(20) Notwithstanding this section, actions undertaken by school personnel to break up a fight or to take a weapon from a student are not prohibited; however, these acts shall be reported.

Current official text: Tennessee Code (LexisNexis). Digitized from the UniCourt Code Improvement Commission public-domain capture. Reproduced from public-domain Tennessee statutes; confirm against the official source for the current text. Not legal advice.