St. Paul Central students march down Marshall Avenue in St. Paul on Tuesday, May 31, 2016. Dozens of students walked out of school Tuesday to protest the treatment by school resource officers. (Pioneer Press: Andy Rathbun)

Students walk out of St. Paul Central High School at about 1:30 p.m. Tuesday, May 31, 2016. The students were protesting treatment by school resource officers following the forceful arrest of a former student outside the school. (Pioneer Press: Andy Rathbun)

Students hold up signs while marching down Marshall Avenue in light right on Tuesday, May 31, 2016. (Pioneer Press: Andy Rathbun)

Students chant while marching down Marshall Avenue on Tuesday, May 31, 2016. (Pioneer Press: Andy Rathbun)

"Keep up the great work," shouted Relesha Billups to the protesting St. Paul Central students as they marched Marshall Avenue. Billups clapped for the students as they passed her home on Tuesday, March 31, 2016. (Pioneer Press: Andy Rathbun)



Police accompanied the marchers Tuesday, May 31, 2016, repeatedly telling them to move to the sidewalk. The protesters, most of whom were students at St. Paul Central, marched down Marshall Avenue to protest what they say is mistreatment by school resource officers. (Pioneer Press: Andy Rathbun)

Dozens of students at St. Paul Central High School walked out of school and marched down Marshall Avenue on Tuesday afternoon to protest what they say is mistreatment by student resource officers.

The protest follows a school resource officer’s May 25 arrest of a former student outside the school. Captured on cellphone video, the incident prompted criticism of the amount of force used by the officer to arrest the 16-year-old.

St. Paul Central junior Makkah Salaam, who walked in the march Tuesday, said the students’ protest was about more than just Wednesday’s incident.

“We don’t feel safe in our schools,” the 17-year-old said, referring to how students — particularly those of color — are treated by officers in schools.

“This is an ongoing thing,” she said. “It’s always been like this.”

The students walked out of school about 1:30 p.m. and marched down the traffic lanes of Marshall to St. Paul City Hall to deliver a list of about a dozen demands. They read a list of 13 demands from the Facebook event announcing the walkout, to Mayor Chris Coleman. The demands include:

The firing of officer Bill Kraus — the officer involved in the May 25 arrest at Central.

Screening for de-escalation of conflict and building relationships and trust in diverse communities.

Racial bias and de-escalation training for officers.

A student review board for the hiring process of officers.

Procedures for handling of complaints and follow-up on intervention incidents.

Coleman later issued a statement saying his meeting with the students was valuable.

“I respect their engagement and believe they have given some careful thought to the school district’s School Resource Officer program,” Coleman said. “While there are a number of demands for which the City does not have direct oversight, I am inspired to find areas where I might be able to help them achieve some of their demands – and I committed to them that I would begin by reviewing their requests.”

Coleman said he also told the students that arrests are rarely easy to watch and not all arrests demonstrate police brutality.

“De-escalation is a key skill the Chief and I look for and expect from our officers,” Coleman said. “The incident at Central High School is being reviewed by command staff within the Saint Paul Police Department, as in any case involving use of force, and I expect to hear their assessment in the coming days.”

The St. Paul Police Department said in a statement last week that Kraus had responded to a report that the teenager was trespassing at the school. The 16-year-old resisted arrest and was sprayed with a chemical irritant before the officer used two “knee strikes” on his leg and forced him to the ground, according to the police account.

David Titus, president of the St. Paul Police Federation, said in a statement last week that Kraus “followed proper procedure to address this trespassing incident by a young male who was not a student at Central High School, which resulted in the disruption of classroom activities during preparations for critical final exams.”

But school member Steve Marchese said he was “angry and appalled” over the teenager’s treatment.

“Whatever the reason, he did not deserve what is depicted in this video,” Marchese wrote on Facebook. “To have this kind of action perpetuated by a white school resource officer who is supposed to be protecting our students and staff is unacceptable and raises questions about the continued wisdom of SROs (school resource officers) in our schools.”

In a statement Tuesday, St. Paul Public Schools said the district values its partnership with the St. Paul Police Department and school resource officers.

“The School Resource Officers have been a fixture in SPPS for over 30 years and play an important role in keeping buildings safe and secure,” the district said.

“When an SRO intervenes in a situation at a school, it becomes a police matter. The police have informed us that they are reviewing the incident that happened last week at Central. They do every time force is used to determine what happened and whether or not the use of force could have been avoided.

“SPPS and Saint Paul Police will continue to work together to strengthen training with an emphasis on creating strong relationships and non-violent crisis intervention,” the district said.