'ZERO TOLERANCE' IN THE DOGHOUSE

Chris Laurin has won his battle against a dope-sniffing dog. But the wider
issue is unresolved.

Chris is a 15-year-old Grade 10 student at St. Matthew High School. He was
recently suspended after a police drug dog smelled marijuana on his coat.
No drugs were found, however.

His appeal to a superintendent of the Ottawa-Carleton Catholic School Board
succeeded. The school principal apologized; the suspension has been expunged.

Good. The wider issue, though, is how we treat teens. In Ottawa, school
"lockdowns," in which police do indiscriminate searches of personal
property without the student present, are routine. They need no evidence or
even a suspicion of wrongdoing to conduct such fishing expeditions. This is
blind adherence to "zero tolerance" in the name of safe schools.

Should principals and police be able to search a locker for illegal drugs
if they are suspicious? Yes. But they shouldn't be allowed to do so on mere
whim. That teaches teens not to respect power, but to expect its abuse.