KALAMA STUDENTS APPLAUD ACUMEN OF DRUG-HUNT DOG

MAKAWAO - Recognizing the search limitations of a first-time
drug-sniffing dog, staff and students at Kalama Intermediate School
expressed high hopes Friday for success in the fight against
substance abuse on campus.

With TV cameras rolling under the eyes of about 800 6th-to
8th-graders, Custer, the drug-sniffing dog, showed his ability to
identify a suspicious odor in a backpack on the campus lawn.

The crowd applauded Custer's efforts and so did his trainer and
owner, Whitney White of Interquest Detection Canines of Hawaii.

"Oh, he did a good job, guys," White said as she held up a sealed
plastic bottle of vodka which Custer had sniffed out from a zipped
up backpack.

Eighth-graders Artemisa Pacheco, Carly Dela Cruz and Jayme Boonstra
all expressed support for canine drug searches at their school.

"I think it's pretty good that they could catch people with drugs.
They're not supposed to be doing that," Pacheco said.

Dela Cruz said the knowledge that a drug-sniffing dog can come to
her campus on any given day serves as an effective deterrent for students.

"It's good just to know the dog is going to be here on campus," she
said. "It could stop the drugs."

Pacheco, who's expected to enroll at King Kekaulike High School next
year as a freshman, said she believes high schools should also
employ drug-sniffing dogs. "They probably should," she said.

"They should," Boonstra added.

Whether it be drugs, alcohol, gunpowder or prescription medications,
often abused by individuals, Custer has been trained to detect them
all and sit by them as his trainer checks out his findings.

"All he knows," White explained to a questioning student, "is that
he finds the smell. He doesn't care what it is. He sits the same
way, whether it's drugs or alcohol."

Custer's searching at Kalama Intermediate – the first public
school in Hawaii to allow drug-sniffing dogs on campus – will
be limited to the campus landscaping, building exteriors and
restrooms. Dogs will not be allowed to search people or backpacks,
and until the attorney general's office approves, there will be no
sniffing around lockers.

In response to a student's question, White said it takes about nine
to 12 months to train a drug-sniffing dog. Most are trained at
Interquest's corporate headquarters in Houston.

White, the owner of the only nonprofit canine drug dog service in
the state, has the certification and licensing authority to train
dogs and use illegal drugs during such training. She said she has a
second dog waiting on the Mainland to move here, should her
agency get more jobs.

For now, Custer is limited to conducting searches at two private
schools on Oahu and at several hotels and businesses on Maui.

"We're not busy enough," White said.

White told Kalama parents in a Wednesday-night briefing that dogs
are initially qualified for the drug-sniffing tasks through several
tests including tossing an item containing the smell of illegal
substances as many as 40 times. The canine, according to White, must
be able to go after the substances all 40 times and with as much hunger.

For that reason, when Custer is not working, the 62-pound golden
retriever is held in a 4- by 10-foot kennel where he stays until
it's time to do a drug search or run through more training. Custer
is not allowed to go to the beach, go for walks or even roam freely
around White's home.

White maintains that keeping the mild-mannered dog's activities
minimal makes Custer an effective drug-sniffing dog.

"We always want him to hunger for the smell," she said.

Mary Cochran, the state Board of Education Neighbor Island
representative from Maui, expressed hopes that locker searches would
be approved soon. At the Kalama demonstration, Cochran, who is an
attorney, said she believes a "compelling state interest" exists and
overrides individual rights to privacy on a public school campus.

"But that's the call of the AG's office for now. The main thing is
we want to keep drugs out."

School Renewal Specialist Bruce Anderson of the Kekaulike complex
said public schools in the Upcountry area have not discussed the use
of canine searches.

"Any school is going to look at the pilot first and see how it works
there," he said.

Sixth-grader Derek Kahalekai said he felt more secure knowing his
campus was employing canine searches.

"It's nice to know we can be drug free because of the dog."

Substitute teacher Robert Johnston, who is employed at least two to
three days a week at Kalama, called the program "a worthwhile idea
to try out." Another substitute teacher, Antonia Armstrong, held
back students who wanted to stroke Custer and see him up close.

"I love dogs and kids love dogs but this one is here for a good
purpose. I think the psychological aspect of just having this dog on
campus will help to fight this drug problem we have on the island," she said.

Kalama counselor Matthew Macik said he would have supported bringing
the drug-sniffing dog without any student orientation.

"I think they should have just come and done it if they want to find
out about drugs," Macik said.

Costales reiterated Friday that the motivation for a drug-sniffing
dogs is purely a preventative measure and is not targeted at any
individuals at Kalama. In material presented to parents Wednesday,
he reported students were found in possession of illegal drugs or
alcohol regularly, although he emphasized Kalama's experience with
banned substances was not worse than other schools in Hawaii.

"This is the time when students are trying new things, not always
good things," he said.

School Resource Officer Darrell Ramos said police calls to Kalama
dropped by 48 percent in the first year he was assigned to the
campus three years ago. Authorities at the school reported to police
a variety of cases including assault, thefts and drug abuse.

"I think as a deterrent it should benefit this school. There's no
doubt about it," Ramos said.

The pilot project, paid through private donations, is expected to
run through the end of the school year with three other campuses
– Lahainaluna High, Lahaina Intermediate, and Lanai High and
Elementary School – expected to join the program shortly.

White said she's hoping more schools will adopt a canine substance
abuse program and she'll need more public financial support to fund
the unannounced searches. For more information or to make a
donation, call White at 281-7075.