RIGID DRUG POLICY FREEZES OUT REASON

The sad case of a 15-year-old Pensacola High School honor student, caught
up in a mess over a bag of pills that now threatens her college future,
speaks volumes of the errors of an iron-clad "zero tolerance" drug policy.

And the pending expulsion of Teresa Elenz appears to be one such error.

So far as we can tell, no one challenges Elenz`s story: that she discovered
a bag of pills on the PHS campus, picked them up out of curiosity and then,
well aware of the penalties for drugs at school, panicked. She hesitated to
put them down again or toss them in a wastebasket for fear of being seen.
She decided against turning them in to a teacher, again fearing the
consequences of possession.

She came up with a plan to dispose of the pills, but in the meantime put
them into the possession of a friend, whose indiscretion led to their
confiscation and back to her.

Did she show poor judgment? Maybe so - but then, she`s 15.

The Pensacola Police Department, called in to investigate, concluded that
her story was truthful. "Elenz had no intention to do anything with the
pills other than to destroy them," reported the investigating officer.

And why not believe her? Teresa has an unblemished record of discipline, is
a member of the National Honor Society, attends the prestigious
International Baccalaureate program and was identified years ago by Duke
University as showing promise for the future. Her college plans include
earning a doctorate in astronomy.

Now, she is suspended from school and IB, and an Escambia School District
committee has recommended her expulsion.

We certainly have no objection to a process to determine the truth, but why
suspend her and recommend expulsion before all the facts are considered?
Because of an inflexible policy that doesn`t make sense. But there is
always time for drastic action, if it is warranted, after due consideration.

Elenz has an appeal hearing today, at which the suspension and recommended
expulsion can be overturned. They should be. If they are not, the School
Board should overturn them.

Drugs are a problem for young people, and the zero tolerance policy is a
response to that. But it is the wrong response.

Yes, drugs can ruin a student`s future - but we figure that presumes the
student is using or selling them, not caught up in an unfortunate, tragic
comedy of errors.

The School District can do better than this.