Pubdate: Fri, 29 Mar 2002 Source: New London Day (CT) Copyright: 2002 The Day Publishing Co. Contact: http://www.newlondonday.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/293 Author: Michael Costanza Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/youth.htm (Youth) POLICE SWEEP SCHOOL FOR DRUGS Westerly Students' Lockers Searched Westerly -- Police officers and 11 drug-sniffing dogs descended on Westerly High School early Thursday morning to search for drugs in students' lockers, in classrooms and offices, and in the cars of students and teachers. School officials opened three lockers in which dogs detected a suspicious scent and found drug residue in one. Police also found drug paraphernalia in one student's car. Several police departments in Rhode Island and Connecticut, including Ledyard and Waterford, joined Westerly police in the drug sweep, which also served as a training exercise for law-enforcement officials and their K-9 dog teams. Officers from the Naval Submarine Base in Groton, the U.S. Coast Guard, the Rhode Island Department of Corrections and the Rhode Island airport police also participated. "Our purpose was to send a clear message that we want a safe and drug-free school," Principal James Murano Jr. said. Some teachers and students raised concerns about privacy issues, but most had no problems with the search, he said. Westerly Police Chief J. David Smith said he attended a faculty meeting in the afternoon to discuss questions teachers had about the legality and purpose of the search. Police discussed the same issues ahead of time with the Rhode Island Attorney General's office. Westerly's school policies are clear in allowing school officials to search lockers if they have a reasonable suspicion that a student might have an illegal substance inside, Smith said. Legal precedents also hold that students have a "diminished expectation of privacy" on school grounds, he said. School officials and police might conduct more searches in the future, he said. "Our intelligence continues to indicate that there are a number of students who do use drugs in Westerly and who use them on school grounds," Smith said, "and we have made a number of arrests for marijuana on the school campus. We want to send the message that we will do anything necessary to discourage the sale or use of drugs at Westerly's schools." Westerly police and school administrators have talked for years about conducting such sweeps but had never planned one until Smith and Superintendent Scott Kizner discussed the idea again weeks ago. Police and school officials agreed that police would conduct criminal investigations or make arrests only if they found significant amounts of drugs or if they found weapons. "If we found something like a (marijuana) roach, we would just turn it over to the school administrators to handle," Smith said. Police started the sweep around 5:40 a.m. Teams of police and school officials walked along rows of lockers in the hallways with the drug-sniffing dogs. If a dog detected a drug scent at a locker, officers put a sticker on the locker and moved on. If another dog detected a suspicious scent at the same locker, school officials opened the locker and searched it. School officials opened only three lockers out of hundreds, Smith said. They found a small container with drug residue inside one. School officials spoke to the student and took no disciplinary action, according to Murano. The search inside the school ended as the first students and teachers arrived for the day. The police and dogs remained at the school in the hopes of gaining the attention of students, Smith said. "They saw the police presence, which was our desired effect and hopefully raised some questions," Smith said. Police then used the dogs to sniff cars, including teachers' and students', in the parking lots. Police searched inside one car after a student, a senior, urgently told school officials she needed to retrieve her inhaler from it. Police found a small amount of marijuana and drug paraphernalia inside, Smith said. Murano said school and police officials are discussing how to handle the case. The car was not parked on school property, he said. - --- MAP posted-by: Alex