APPEALS COURT REJECTS CHALLENGE TO LAW DENYING STUDENT AID TO DRUG OFFENDERS

Opponents of a law that prevents students who are convicted of drug
offenses from receiving federal financial aid were handed another
legal defeat today.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, upholding a 2006
decision by a U.S. District Court, has refused to reinstate a lawsuit
that sought to strike down the law.

In its ruling the appeals court rejected arguments by the Students for
Sensible Drug Policy Foundation, which filed the appeal, that the
federal law is unconstitutional.

The group argued, in part, that denial of financial aid by the
Education Department to students who have already served a
court-imposed sentence violates the U.S. Constitution's ban on double
jeopardy, criminally punishing someone twice for the same offense. But
the appeals court said that the federal law's sanctions cannot be
considered criminally punitive, especially in the double-jeopardy
context.