Pubdate: Thu, 14 Nov 2002 Source: Surrey Now (CN BC) Copyright: 2002 Lower Mainland Publishing Group Inc., A Canwest Company Contact: http://www.thenownewspaper.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1462 Author: Stewart Calder DRUG SEARCHES BY BOARD AN INVASION OF PRIVACY The Editor, Re: "Drug dogs turn up opposition," the Now, Nov. 2. So the Surrey school board is now contemplating instigating random locker searches and drug-sniffing dogs, which seems to be another program introduced by Heather Stilwell. Isn't Heather Stilwell one of the people who helped spend over $1 million of my tax money, unsuccessfully trying to ban books? It was mentioned the RCMP have to get a search warrant to carry out this kind of action, so the Surrey school board would use a private security company to circumvent the RCMP. It should be pointed out the reason the RCMP have to get a search warrant is because people have an expectation of privacy and we don't need our police forces acting like Nazis. This is obviously a principle which will not stand in the way of Stilwell and company. What's next? Strip searches? This will inevitably lead to another court case somewhere down the line and there goes another million, which could have been spent on education. The fact Stilwell and company are still in office is a reflection on the apathy of Surrey voters - we are lucky to get 20 per cent of the electorate out to vote. Stewart Calder Surrey - --- MAP posted-by: Larry Stevens