Fill out this form to email this article to a friend
Sarasota schools may use Breathalyzers at events
After a Valentine's dance turned violent, principals requested a policy to combat teenage alcohol use.
Associated Press
Published September 5, 2005
SARASOTA - Hoping that the measure will help keep dances and athletic events under control, school officials in Sarasota County are deciding whether to impose Breathalyzer tests on students attending those gatherings.
Principals within the district made the request, which is being evaluated by lawyers.
"The issue is one basically of searches," said Art Hardy, legal counsel for the county school board. "Certainly schools have more discretion than, say, the police do. But I didn't find anything specifically addressing that point."
The plan, at least partly, stems from a Sarasota High Valentine's dance earlier this year. Some teens drank rum, others played music loudly in the parking lot, and a disabled man who confronted the group was beaten so severely that his face needed reconstructive surgery.
That sparked a requirement that school-sponsored activities be held on campus, except for the prom, graduation and homecoming. Yet officials wonder whether those changes will be enough.
"Our biggest problem is alcohol," said Barbara Chomko, the executive director of secondary education for Sarasota County.
Several districts nationwide have already enacted plans like what the Sarasota district is considering.
In Carlsbad, N.M., students were randomly tested for alcohol consumption at the high school prom. In Little Rock, students suspected of preprom drinking at Bryant High were subjected to Breathalyzer tests, a zero-tolerance approach that arose from problems at previous proms. The same tests were issued at Westwood High in suburban Boston.
After the Sarasota Valentine's incident, Chomko said the district's policy on the number of security and chaperones at dances did not change.
Chomko said some parents have allowed students to drink at homes before going out to events.
"I can't tell you how many times we've uncovered those type of issues," she said.
School officials in Sarasota have yet to decide how the Breathalyzer program, if enacted, would be administered.
[Last modified September 5, 2005, 01:15:10]
Share your thoughts on this story
|
News
Fifty years ago, they were screwed-up kids sent to the Florida School for Boys to be straightened out. But now they are screwed-up men, scarred by the whippings they endured. Read the story and see a video and portrait gallery.
Print
Email story
Comment
Email editor
