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GOOSE CREEK - Students crouch or lie facedown on the hard floor, their hands restrained behind their backs by clear plastic handcuffs. Police, with weapons drawn, walk around and over them, while drug-sniffing dogs stick their noses in and out of book bags.
The video images from the Nov. 5 drug sweep at Stratford High School have played over and over on national TV since a school official released the tape to the media the next day.
Now, with a state police investigation under way and people from across the country watching, it still isn't clear how this could have happened.
Goose Creek police aren't answering questions about whether they overreacted. Neither is the city's mayor, who is the police chief's boss.
The school's principal, George McCrackin, said he called in police to take care of a "drug problem." He said he had no idea they would come in with guns unholstered.
Still, he didn't intervene once he realized what was going on. Instead, he stood watching, along with assistant principals, teachers and coaches as the 45-minute search progressed. The dogs reacted to 12 book bags, but no drugs were found.
In a letter to Stratford parents, McCrackin said he was "surprised and extremely concerned when I observed the guns drawn. However, once police are on campus, they are in charge."
The State Law Enforcement Division may or may not back up his position. The agency's investigation is expected to wrap up in several weeks.
At least one parent whose child wasn't involved said she is putting her son in another school. Lisa Brown said her son, a freshman, thinks the sting targeted black students.
"He's tired of being stereotyped," she said.
Another mother, whose son was involved in the sweep, said she is speeding up their move to California. Tina Penn's 15-year-old son, Cedric Penn Jr., was in the hallway when police ran inside and ordered everyone down.
On his knees and facing the wall, the teen said a gun was pointed at his head. "I think it was racially motivated," he said.
That is not the case, said Pam Bailey, executive director of the Berkeley County Schools Office of Public Relations. "Nothing could be further from the truth," she said.
Taking sides
School officials said they saw suspicious activity taking place in the same spot at the same time of day four days in a row. That's why that hallway was targeted, she said.
Stratford, the largest of six high schools in the Berkeley district, has 2,700 students. It's designed to have 1,800 students. Seventy percent of the school's students are white; 20 percent are black.
Tina Penn said her son is in counseling because of the incident, and the family is planning to move to California at the end of the month, rather than at the end of the school year.
"The principal needs to be held accountable," she said.
Others can't say enough good things about McCrackin. The Stratford High Student Council sent a letter to the Berkeley County school board in support of the principal. Describing him as a "dedicated, selfless individual," the students said he puts them first.
On Friday, students and teachers held a rally outside the Crowfield Boulevard school.
Junior Lauren Shull, whose mother teaches at Stratford, said she approves of the actions of the school and the police.
"They're trying to keep the school safe," the 16-year-old said.
Not here, certainly
A sign outside the Stratford High School entrance proclaims the Knights as 1999 football champions.
The school has a nationally ranked speech and debate team, a nationally ranked academic team and received the Governor's Award for Service Learning.
"Stratford High School is one of the outstanding schools in the state," said Chester Floyd, who has been the county's superintendent for six years.
Since the sweep, it has also been one of the most talked about schools in the country. The school system's district office has fielded calls from national media and talk show hosts, including Oprah Winfrey and Montel Williams.
In his letter to parents, McCrackin said "at no time was there any indication to me that the requested search would involve any police officers having guns drawn 'at ready.' Police have never drawn weapons in any search prior to Wednesday."
That doesn't satisfy Stratford senior Amber McCutcheon, who said the school has been forever tarnished by the raid.
"We were known for our football team. Now, we're known for the cops pointing guns at the students," said McCutcheon, 17.
An explanation?
If state laws are broken, Solicitor Ralph Hoisington of Charleston would be the prosecutor. He has a lot of questions.
"I've been waiting on a reasonable explanation of why the police officers had to pull guns. I've seen none," he said.
He called the U.S. Attorney's Office and alerted them to the incident, in case any federal charges arise. The U.S. Attorney's Office, in such cases, notifies the FBI and the Justice Department's civil rights division.
At a meeting Wednesday night in North Charleston, officials with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and American Civil Liberties Union organized a committee to study what happened at Stratford.
As for the school district, Floyd said the administration is working as hard to create a safe environment for the students, preferably without another drug raid with guns involved.
The video images from the Nov. 5 drug sweep at Stratford High School have played over and over on national TV since a school official released the tape to the media the next day.
Now, with a state police investigation under way and people from across the country watching, it still isn't clear how this could have happened.
Goose Creek police aren't answering questions about whether they overreacted. Neither is the city's mayor, who is the police chief's boss.
The school's principal, George McCrackin, said he called in police to take care of a "drug problem." He said he had no idea they would come in with guns unholstered.
Still, he didn't intervene once he realized what was going on. Instead, he stood watching, along with assistant principals, teachers and coaches as the 45-minute search progressed. The dogs reacted to 12 book bags, but no drugs were found.
In a letter to Stratford parents, McCrackin said he was "surprised and extremely concerned when I observed the guns drawn. However, once police are on campus, they are in charge."
The State Law Enforcement Division may or may not back up his position. The agency's investigation is expected to wrap up in several weeks.
At least one parent whose child wasn't involved said she is putting her son in another school. Lisa Brown said her son, a freshman, thinks the sting targeted black students.
"He's tired of being stereotyped," she said.
Another mother, whose son was involved in the sweep, said she is speeding up their move to California. Tina Penn's 15-year-old son, Cedric Penn Jr., was in the hallway when police ran inside and ordered everyone down.
On his knees and facing the wall, the teen said a gun was pointed at his head. "I think it was racially motivated," he said.
That is not the case, said Pam Bailey, executive director of the Berkeley County Schools Office of Public Relations. "Nothing could be further from the truth," she said.
Taking sides
School officials said they saw suspicious activity taking place in the same spot at the same time of day four days in a row. That's why that hallway was targeted, she said.
Stratford, the largest of six high schools in the Berkeley district, has 2,700 students. It's designed to have 1,800 students. Seventy percent of the school's students are white; 20 percent are black.
Tina Penn said her son is in counseling because of the incident, and the family is planning to move to California at the end of the month, rather than at the end of the school year.
"The principal needs to be held accountable," she said.
Others can't say enough good things about McCrackin. The Stratford High Student Council sent a letter to the Berkeley County school board in support of the principal. Describing him as a "dedicated, selfless individual," the students said he puts them first.
On Friday, students and teachers held a rally outside the Crowfield Boulevard school.
Junior Lauren Shull, whose mother teaches at Stratford, said she approves of the actions of the school and the police.
"They're trying to keep the school safe," the 16-year-old said.
Not here, certainly
A sign outside the Stratford High School entrance proclaims the Knights as 1999 football champions.
The school has a nationally ranked speech and debate team, a nationally ranked academic team and received the Governor's Award for Service Learning.
"Stratford High School is one of the outstanding schools in the state," said Chester Floyd, who has been the county's superintendent for six years.
Since the sweep, it has also been one of the most talked about schools in the country. The school system's district office has fielded calls from national media and talk show hosts, including Oprah Winfrey and Montel Williams.
In his letter to parents, McCrackin said "at no time was there any indication to me that the requested search would involve any police officers having guns drawn 'at ready.' Police have never drawn weapons in any search prior to Wednesday."
That doesn't satisfy Stratford senior Amber McCutcheon, who said the school has been forever tarnished by the raid.
"We were known for our football team. Now, we're known for the cops pointing guns at the students," said McCutcheon, 17.
An explanation?
If state laws are broken, Solicitor Ralph Hoisington of Charleston would be the prosecutor. He has a lot of questions.
"I've been waiting on a reasonable explanation of why the police officers had to pull guns. I've seen none," he said.
He called the U.S. Attorney's Office and alerted them to the incident, in case any federal charges arise. The U.S. Attorney's Office, in such cases, notifies the FBI and the Justice Department's civil rights division.
At a meeting Wednesday night in North Charleston, officials with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and American Civil Liberties Union organized a committee to study what happened at Stratford.
As for the school district, Floyd said the administration is working as hard to create a safe environment for the students, preferably without another drug raid with guns involved.