The New York Civil Liberties Union announced Wednesday that it is filing a class action suit against the city on behalf of five students ranging in age from 13 to 18, who say they were arrested without probable cause in public schools.

The group says the cases are indicative of a larger problem, where officers resort to street tactics to deal with students who may be unruly, but are not committing crimes.

The lawsuit lists 26 different instances where it claims students were singled out and roughed up for things that used to be handled in the principal's office.

"At worst, they broke a school rule, no crime. Yet they were arrested, even beaten by police personnel for such transgressions as disrespect, writing on the desk, trying to wait outside of school for mom, cell phones, being late to class or lunch, even going to the bathroom," said Donna Lieberman of the NYCLU.

School safety officers who can make arrests but are unarmed were brought in under the NYPD's supervision about a decade ago.

Their union's president calls the lawsuit frivolous and unfounded.

"Our members have to follow strict guidelines and the police department has a disciplinary system to make sure that's in place," said Local 237 President Gregory Floyd. "Am I saying everything is perfect? No. But am I saying the majority of our school safety agents do a good job? Yes."

The NYCLU says it would like to see the thousands of officers currently patrolling city schools to be reassigned, leaving discipline to the educators.

In response to the lawsuit, the city's Law Department released the following statement:

"We have just received the formal complaint and are reviewing it. However, it goes without saying that the city's school safety officers handle a very difficult job with professionalism and dedication. Maintaining a safe environment for our children is paramount, and it's impossible to ignore the important balance – protecting children while keeping order – that they strive to meet every day."