SMALL TOWNS NOT FREE OF BIG-CITY PROBLEMS

The drug arrest of two sixth-graders at Northeast Elementary School in
January caught many people by surprise and are a reminder that
problems with drugs and crime extend beyond the city limits. On Jan.
30, a 12-year-old boy was arrested for selling marijuana and an
11-year-old girl suspected of buying drugs from him was arrested for
possession of marijuana. Six other sixth-graders admitted to at least
handling the drugs and all eight were recommended for expulsion.

The amount of pot found -- two small pouches, or dime bags -- was
minimal, but that did little to assuage concerned parents of students
at the 800-student school in Pride.

Added to six bullets found in the suspected dealer's book sack, the
arrests should serve as a wake-up call for parents and
administrators.

Northeast Elementary School is a quiet, tree-lined school a long,
winding drive from Baton Rouge.

Rural communities such as Pride, far from the noise, traffic and
crowds of cities, often seem shielded from big-city issues. Drug abuse
and crime are looked at by many as inner-city problems.

However, numbers from the most recent national survey by the U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services show that these problems do
not disappear with the absence of tall buildings and dense
populations. The agency reported statistics for large metropolitan
areas, small metro areas, non-metro areas and rural areas.

In 2002, the rate of overall illegal drug use among people ages 12 or
older in the United States was lower in non-metropolitan areas than in
large metropolitan counties, but the difference was small -- 6.6
percent in the rural areas compared to 8.6 percent in the cities.

Statistics for alcohol and cigarette use, both linked to increased
rates of illicit drug use, are even starker in non-metropolitan regions.

Rural areas outpaced every other geographic area in binge drinking
rates, with 14.2 percent of those age 12 to 17 saying they had engaged
in binge drinking in the past month. In large metropolitan areas the
rate was 10.1 percent.

The report also found that the rate of cigarette smoking among rural
youth is nearly double that of the youth in large metropolitan areas.

In addition to the setting, what sticks out about the arrests at
Northeast Elementary School is the age of the students involved, as
drug use is often portrayed as a problem among high school and college
students.

Many parents assume that their children might be exposed to drugs in
high school, but elementary schools are not often linked to such
problems. While Northeast Elementary is unique among parish elementary
schools in that it runs through the sixth grade (no others go higher
than the fifth grade), the arrests are nonetheless reflective of what
federal statistics show: Children can be exposed to drugs before high
school.

The Department of Health and Human Services study shows that rates of
drug use are much higher in high-school-age teens, but that many
children are exposed to drugs before they enter high school.

While only 4.2 percent of 12- and 13-year-olds in the survey reported
using illegal drugs, 26 percent said it would be "fairly easy" to
obtain marijuana.

John Connelly, spokesman for the East Baton Rouge Parish school
system, said the arrests have sparked a dialogue among system officials.

"In general when we have any event that tests security procedures and
safety measures, we have many discussions . re-analyze what we have in
place and see if we need to do more," he said.

The arrests happened after school administrators were tipped off by a
concerned student. Connelly said student cooperation at school is
vital to combating drugs. He also urged parents to be watchful at home.

"We encourage parents to be additional eyes and ears for us. Ask the
questions at home, look in the book sacks, look in the vehicles," he
said.

Two arrests certainly do not constitute a crisis, but maybe they can
serve as a reminder that small towns are not immune from youth drug
use. School administrators might also be encouraged to respond
publicly to the issue and not decline to comment, as Northeast
administrators did.

Heath Druzin covers the police beat for The Advocate.