cannabisnews.com: School Dist. Denies Drug Testing Deprives Student School Dist. Denies Drug Testing Deprives Student Posted by FoM on May 18, 2000 at 12:28:40 PT By Pam Easton, The Associated Press Source: Amarillo Globe The Lockney Independent School District on Tuesday said its mandatory drug testing program does not violate the constitutional rights of sixth-grader whose father filed a lawsuit against the policy in March. Brady Tannahill's father, Larry, and the American Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit on behalf of Brady after the district said it would punish him for not taking the test. Larry Tannahill had refused to sign the consent form allowing the test. The lawsuit said the across-the-board policy violated Tannahill's right to be free from unreasonable search and seizure as guaranteed by the Constitution. The policy states that "any refusal by the student and/or parent to sign the consent form will be treated as a positive test." The school district filed a response to the lawsuit in federal court Tuesday, saying the policy is the community's solution to a drug problem. The policy says students who test positive or refuse a test must undergo monthly drug tests for a year while facing escalating punishments each time there is a positive test or a refusal. Brady was the only drug testing holdout of the 400 students in grades six through 12 in the small farming community, located about 90 miles south of Amarillo. He faces a 21-day suspension from extracurricular activities, at least three days' in-school suspension and three sessions of substance-abuse counseling because his father refused to sign the consent form in February, when the policy was implemented. Both sides agreed Brady will not be punished until the lawsuit is fully litigated. Less than three weeks after the lawsuit was filed, the school board declined to act on an appeal of Brady's punishment filed by his father. "My son is an A and B student," Larry Tannahill said in February while the drug tests were being conducted. "He's never been in trouble, and right now, they are saying he's guilty." The test policy was widely supported in the community. During a March school board meeting, many of the 400 in attendance wore red and white T-shirts that said, "We asked for it. LISD delivered it. We appreciate it." LISD Superintendent Raymond Lusk said during the meeting that the policy was needed to "provide an optimum education." Sundown School District, located south of Lubbock, has a similar mandatory drug testing policy that has never been challenged. Lubbock:Web Posted: Wednesday, May 17, 2000By Pam Easton, The Associated Press © 2000 Amarillo Globe-News Related Articles & Web Site:ACLUhttp://www.aclu.org/Lockney School Board To Meet http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread5167.shtmlACLU Files Suit Against Lockney ISD Drug-Testing http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread5018.shtmlACLU Enters Lockney ISD Drug-Testing Controversy http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread4863.shtmlFather Fights School Suspension of Sonhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread4598.shtmlFight Over Mandatory Drug Testshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread4583.shtml Cannabis News Drug Testing Archives:http://cannabisnews.com/news/list/drug_testing.shtml Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #3 posted by FoM on June 01, 2000 at 21:22:43 PT Testing Schoolchildren Without Cause Testing Schoolchildren Without CauseNewshawk: http://home.att.net/~theyoungfamilyPubdate: Thu, 01 Jun 2000Source: Chicago Tribune (IL)Copyright: 2000 Chicago Tribune CompanyContact: ctc-TribLetter Tribune.com Address: 435 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago, IL 60611-4066Website: http://www.chicagotribune.com/Forum: http://www.chicagotribune.com/interact/boards/Author: Steve ChapmanAmerican public schools tend to resemble prisons more all the time, and the trend is especially conspicuous in the small rural town of Lockney, in the Texas panhandle. When the parents of one 6th-grade boy refused to go along with a new drug policy, his prescribed punishment was a three-day in-school suspension, during which time he would have to wear--I'm not making this up--an orange jumpsuit.News Article Courtesy Of MapInc.http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n729/a02.html Testing Schoolchildren Without Cause [ Post Comment ] Comment #2 posted by Dan Hillman on May 18, 2000 at 16:26:32 PT Dyslexia Am I reading this right? The school district is saying that its own policies don't violate constitutional rights? The school district is judging policies that the school district put in place? [ Post Comment ] Comment #1 posted by dieyuppiescum on May 18, 2000 at 13:58:03 PT WHAT THE ???? Truley disgusting. The people that run the schools in this country have slowly erroded the rights of the individual. Unfortunately, we've heard this trash for so long that people don't think about the fact that IT'S WRONG!! They just take it like the blind sheep they are WITHOUT A THOUGHT usually. [ Post Comment ] Post Comment Name: Optional Password: E-Mail: Subject: Comment: [Please refrain from using profanity in your message] Link URL: Link Title: