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A tip from a student led Fort Wayne Police to the largest amount of marijuana they could remember confiscating in a school.
A 16-year-old male student faces felony possession of marijuana and possible expulsion after police and officials from the Ward Education Center, a Fort Wayne Community Schools alternative school, found almost 4 pounds of the drug in his locker May 2.
The marijuana, valued at an estimated $10,000, was contained in five extra-large Ziplock bags.
The student was arrested and taken to the Allen County Juvenile Center, according to a police report.
Like police, neither district officials nor a national school safety expert could recall a similar incident.
"In my 20-plus years, that has to be one of the largest amounts, if not the largest amount, of marijuana confiscated from an individual in a school," said Kenneth Trump, president of the Cleveland-based National School Safety and Security Service, which has worked with Fort Wayne Community Schools on safety issues.
"A majority of kids don't have drugs, but those that do usually have small amounts on them."
After being tipped off, Ward Education Center staff notified two Fort Wayne Police officers working security at the school, which targets middle- and high-school students who have been expelled or have other behavioral problems.
Police searched a locker that had a "strong odor of marijuana" coming from it and found the "green leafy substance" in a backpack, the report said.
Doug Coutts, FWCS' chief operations officer, declined comment on the incident but said disciplinary action could range from suspension to expulsion.
Normally, a student's past disciplinary problems factor into the extent of their punishment.
In addition to prevention programs, schools in the district perform routine unannounced searches of backpacks and sweeps of parking lots to deter students from bringing drugs on campus, Coutts said.
Because schools reflect the community at-large, problems with drugs and alcohol among students are not unusual, Trump said.
Recently, drug and gang activity has increased in schools across the U.S. because funds for prevention and intervention programs are being diverted elsewhere, he added.
"It's a rollercoaster," Trump said.* "Some people have the view that there has been a cure. Rarely is the problem cured, and it tends to come back even stronger."
Newshawk hossua34-420 Magazine
Pubdate: Wed, 10 May 2006
Source: Journal Gazette, The (IN)
Copyright: 2006 The Journal Gazette
A 16-year-old male student faces felony possession of marijuana and possible expulsion after police and officials from the Ward Education Center, a Fort Wayne Community Schools alternative school, found almost 4 pounds of the drug in his locker May 2.
The marijuana, valued at an estimated $10,000, was contained in five extra-large Ziplock bags.
The student was arrested and taken to the Allen County Juvenile Center, according to a police report.
Like police, neither district officials nor a national school safety expert could recall a similar incident.
"In my 20-plus years, that has to be one of the largest amounts, if not the largest amount, of marijuana confiscated from an individual in a school," said Kenneth Trump, president of the Cleveland-based National School Safety and Security Service, which has worked with Fort Wayne Community Schools on safety issues.
"A majority of kids don't have drugs, but those that do usually have small amounts on them."
After being tipped off, Ward Education Center staff notified two Fort Wayne Police officers working security at the school, which targets middle- and high-school students who have been expelled or have other behavioral problems.
Police searched a locker that had a "strong odor of marijuana" coming from it and found the "green leafy substance" in a backpack, the report said.
Doug Coutts, FWCS' chief operations officer, declined comment on the incident but said disciplinary action could range from suspension to expulsion.
Normally, a student's past disciplinary problems factor into the extent of their punishment.
In addition to prevention programs, schools in the district perform routine unannounced searches of backpacks and sweeps of parking lots to deter students from bringing drugs on campus, Coutts said.
Because schools reflect the community at-large, problems with drugs and alcohol among students are not unusual, Trump said.
Recently, drug and gang activity has increased in schools across the U.S. because funds for prevention and intervention programs are being diverted elsewhere, he added.
"It's a rollercoaster," Trump said.* "Some people have the view that there has been a cure. Rarely is the problem cured, and it tends to come back even stronger."
Newshawk hossua34-420 Magazine
Pubdate: Wed, 10 May 2006
Source: Journal Gazette, The (IN)
Copyright: 2006 The Journal Gazette
