COURT RUSHES TO HEAR DRUG-PENALTY CASE

The Oregon Court of Appeals wants to review the court-ordered reinstatement
of Keanon Ferguson, the Phoenix High School student body president who was
stripped of his title because of drugs. And it wants to do it now.

In a rare move, the court has agreed to expedite the appeal filed by school
officials and set a hearing for Jan. 16 in Salem.

"That's pretty quick," Phoenix-Talent schools Superintendent Dave Willard
said Wednesday. "We were surprised, pleasantly surprised."

If the court had declined to hear the appeal before the school year ended
and Ferguson graduated, the issue probably would have been rendered moot.

Attorney Bill Ferguson sued the school district in September after
administrators stripped his son of his title for having drugs on campus.
Keanon Ferguson was caught with a small amount of marijuana and a glass
pipe in his pocket, and he had drug paraphernalia in his car.

In a controversial ruling, Jackson County Judge Phil Arnold reinstated
Ferguson. The judge ruled that school administrators had no authority to
punish Ferguson beyond the standard five-day suspension for a first-time
drug offense.

The ruling prompted a student-led recall attempt. Organizers garnered
enough signatures to force an election, but the student body voted to
retain Ferguson. School officials refused to give the exact count, saying
only that the vote was close.

The case has been closely watched by educators across the state and led
local schools to review policies to avoid similar problems with their
student leaders.

Willard said the school district is not appealing simply to punish
Ferguson. He said the court order sets a bad precedent and that school
rules give administrators broad discretion to remove elected student
leaders for "actions which are detrimental to the welfare of the school."

If the appeals court sides with the school district, Ferguson might still
be allowed to keep his title, Willard said.

"Whether we would remove him from office at this point is not the issue,"
he said. "The issue is (Arnold's ruling) undermines very much our
authority, and it's a precedent we have to get rid of."

Ferguson attorney Tom Howser has requested a postponement of the Jan. 16
hearing, notifying the appeals court he needs shoulder surgery. The court
has not ruled on the request.

Howser did not return a phone call Wednesday seeking comment.