DAD'S SCHOOL DRUG FIGHT BACKFIRES

He And Son Face Punishment After His Intervention

LITCHFIELD - Next time, James Dugan will just say no.

Dugan caught his 15-year-old son smoking marijuana at home last week, took
away TV and phone privileges, then called Buckeye High School to help catch
the student who sold his boy a $5 joint.

He said he assumed the student had sold to other kids, too, and should be
disciplined. He even ordered his son to wear a hidden recording device to
help detectives trap the student dealer.

But Dugan says he and his son are the only ones who have been punished.

His son was suspended for 10 days by Aloysius Marcinek, a vice principal
who cited the district's "zero tolerance" policy, and Dugan was cited for
disorderly conduct for protesting in the school.

Buckeye schools Superintendent Craig Bailey said he understood Dugan's
anger - the father's phone call was the school's only evidence against the
son - but the district will not budge.

"What he did was the right thing to do," Bailey said of Dugan's phone call.
"But we have to remain true to our policy. We must be consistent. Going the
other way causes a lot more problems."

At Marcinek's urging, Dugan gave permission to Medina County drug
detectives to interview his son, fit him with a hidden recording device and
let him try to buy more marijuana.

Dugan said his son balked. He said he didn't want to be a "narc."

"He was doing this because I was forcing him to, to teach him a lesson,"
Dugan said.

Dugan said Marcinek also had promised not to punish the boy if he helped
detectives.

But he never had the chance.

On Tuesday, school officials notified Dugan that his son would be suspended
and recommended for expulsion for violating the district's policy against
possession of illegal drugs.

"I thought I could trust - I thought I could rely on the word of a school
official and, obviously, that's not the way it's going to work out," Dugan
said. "He went back on his word."

Dugan stormed into the school.

He and Marcinek argued briefly, then Dugan walked into a cafeteria study
hall to wait for his son. He then stood up and announced to the 50
students, "This school is promoting the sale of drugs."

For that, he was cited for disorderly conduct, which could cost him $250.

Superintendent Bailey defended Marcinek, saying the vice principal was
"trying to get to the root of the problem" by persuading Dugan's son to
help detectives with their investigation.

Bailey said the district's lawyer then warned them to adhere to their policy.

Bailey also said the ninth-grader who sold the marijuana hadn't been
punished. He said the district could not suspend him because they did not
have any supporting evidence.