By Citizen staff reporters
It’s an early Friday morning in Brandon High School.
Students are in class, announcements echo through the hallways and ‘Koda,? a 5-year-old Czechoslovakian Springer Spaniel is antsy.
‘This dog is hyper,? said Jake Sias, ‘Koda’s? handler, from D.K. Security, a Kentwood, Mich. based security company that contacts sweeps in public schools. The pair wait in the hallway near the Brandon administration offices for the OK to begin the sweep.
Trained on alcohol, cocaine, gun powder, heroin, LSD, marijuana, and methamphetamines, Koda along with his handler walk past each locker’the dogs nose explores each of the lower locker vents. Koda enters bathrooms, a few classrooms and even sticks his nose in the fire extinguisher lockers. The fidgety little dog scurries along the hallway then stops abruptly, sits quickly and glances up at Sias.
Assistant Principal Jerry Warner relayed the locker number to the main office and the student is called out of class to open the locker. The student is then advised by Sias of the search and asks if there’s any reason the dog would stop at their locker.
The locker is opened and Sias begins the search’books are thumbed-through, pockets of coats are turned inside out, the inside edges of lockers are examined.
‘Nothing,? said Sias. ‘Did you take any medication this morning??
‘Just a ibuprofen before school,? replies the student nervously.
That’s enough to alert the dog–it smelled the medication on the combination lock explains Sias to the student.
They return to class.
For the past few years searches in public schools nationwide have become a common means to curb an escalating drug issue among students. Similar to other districts, both Brandon and Goodrich schools have conducted sweeps as a means to not only find illegal substances but also as a preventive measure.
Between 7:30-8:30 a.m. on Friday morning Koda, stopped or hit on 13 lockers’a typical sweep says Warner.
‘About 99 percent of the hits are innocent,? says Warner. ‘It’s routine, if we’re going to find something in the school it’s going to be a few seeds or stems.?
Koda and Sias are hired from DK Security which employees about 400 in Arizona, Michigan, Ohio, and Kentucky.
‘It’s conveniences,? said Kathryn Kendall Burrill, executive vice president of DK Security. ‘We can be at the school in just a few hours. It’s a growing need statewide, even with budget cuts and some political issues we still work with a lot of schools. Many police dogs only detect illegal drugs such as marijuana, heroin, or cocaine. The dogs from DK Security will hit on alcohol, gun powered or prescription drug too–which is more suited to schools.?
‘It’s a service that’s effective as a deterrent. But it’s up to the school to confiscate the illegal substances when it’s discovered.?
Tom Miller Brandon Schools superintendent says the district has conducted 17 sweeps between April 2005 and April 2006, anytime the administration determines there’s sufficient need for a search. Included in the sweeps are the high school, middle school, intermediate school and the Choices classrooms. Cars in the parking lot are also searched, which Miller says often produces more hits than locker sweeps.
‘Parents return beer bottles to the store, some leaks out in the car and the dog hits on it,? said Miller.
Funded by a Safe and Drug Free Schools grant of $2,000, Brandon Schools utilizes both the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office dogs and a private company to do the sweeps.
‘For the past eight to nine years the school has been conducting drug sweeps,? said Miller. ‘The most common findings during the sweeps are seeds or some residue from marijuana. Arnie Terrell, the Brandon Schools liaison deputy is the contact with the Sheriff’s office and is typically present when the sweeps are conducted.?
‘Our district policy provides for a 10 day suspension and counseling,? says Miller. If the student is found to be selling or intending to sell then it’s a possible expulsion.?
Miller says an issue often arrises for special education students.
‘If the actions by the student are a manifestation of the handicap, then special consideration is given to those students.?
Prescription drugs, including Ritalin, are also becoming more of an issue in the schools, like alcohol, parents have these products around the house.
Since Miller started as superintendent in July 2005, there’s been three expulsions due to possession of controlled substances.
‘There’s drugs in the community that filter into the schools. Education is the key to the decisions students make later in life regarding drugs. I’m pleased to say that we have not found anything in our searches to indicate a major drug problem in the district,? said Miller. ‘The kids have been educated.?
Dave St.Aubin, principal of Goodrich High School, said there have been seven drug sweeps in his two years as principal. He added he would like to increase the frequency of such sweeps to once per month.
Both the Genesee County Sheriff’s Department and a private company, Interquest Detection Canines, are used in the sweeps.
St. Aubin said he prefers to use the sheriffs department because it’s free and gives the drug sniffing dogs added experience in a real-life situation, making the process mutually beneficial.
However, there is a time benefit of using a private company, said St.Aubin. Such companies can come to the school at any given time, where the sheriffs department may not always be available for such a search. Goodrich school district reported spending $750 between April 2005 and April 2006 on searches done by Interquest.
Deputies were called to the school on two occasions where Interquest was used, after illegal substances were found on school grounds.
If drugs are found during a sweep, St. Aubin said he retains the substances for approximately one year in the event a parent requests to see them.
Consequences of drug possession in Goodrich High School vary depending on the student’s number of violations.
St. Aubin said a first time offender will receive a penalty of a five day, out-of-school suspension and enrollment in a drug counseling service.
A second offense results in a ten day out-of-school suspension and enrollment in a more extensive counseling program.
A third offense is cause for expulsion. St.Aubin said he has not yet had any students expelled for reasons of drug use.
‘That’s why we’re doing it, to deter kids from bringing it here or using those substances,? said St.Aubin ‘We can’t control what they do out of school, but we can control what they do in the school.?
David Leyton, Genesee County prosecuting attorney said the (schools?) first responsibility is to their local police departments to report drug use.
‘They should be reporting to their local police departments,? said Leyton. Then the police investigate and bring it to me and I make a decision on whether an arrest should be issued. I think whether the school personnel should report to the parents should be a policy of the school board. The school board should have a policy for employees on what to do if contraband is discovered. If someone observes a crime, they ought to call the police.?
‘No law obligating (the schools) to contact us, but they have to be careful of aiding and abetting statutes. If they can be deemed to aid and abet in covering up drugs. The principal could be liable for possession if they confiscate.?
Deborah L. Carley, Oakland County chief deputy prosecutor says school officials have a reponsibility to find illegal substances in the schools.
‘I would be hard pressed to believe that teachers and administrators would not report to prosecutors. I have been told there are districts that do not,? said Carley. I have been told of principals that will leave drugs in their desks until they dispose of them, very bad idea, because then they can be charged.?
‘If they are in possession of drugs, it’s a felony. But if you have evidence, in their locker, in the parking lot, that’s a different story. A whole separate body of law that applies to schools,? said Carley.
‘A tremendous amount of laws that apply, from how to handle special education students, to records. Do they have to tell parents? I don’t know. Do parents have a right to know? You bet. Would I want to know? you bet. They should report it. One of the issues, is some schools report every type of serious violation of the law, other districts we rarely see.