MATER DEI PRINCIPAL SAYS DRUG TESTING IS EVENHANDED

Of More Than 4,000 Students Evaluated Since 1997, Fewer Than 35 Had
Positive Results. None Has Been Expelled.

Mater Dei Principal Pat Murphy on Wednesday said that of the more than
4,000 drug tests administered since the private Catholic school implemented
its drug-testing program in 1997, fewer than 35 were positive and no
student tested positive on more than two occasions.

Murphy's statements directly contradict those of a former school nurse who
has accused Murphy of giving preferential treatment to an athlete who
tested positive for drugs four times. She sued the school and the Diocese
of Orange on Tuesday, alleging she was wrongfully terminated after
confronting Murphy.

Murphy has denied the accusation, and archdiocese officials have been
unavailable for comment.

According to Murphy, no students have been expelled under the drug-testing
program. He said a handful of first-time offenders have undergone
counseling and a smaller number of repeat offenders have had certain
privileges revoked or been given a detention. Attending a school-sponsored
dance is one example of a privilege that has been restricted, Murphy said.

A third violation would result in the offender being asked to withdraw from
school, Murphy said.

Sheila Azzara, the former school nurse, contends in her suit that the
athlete who tested positive four times was never asked to leave school. The
lawsuit says the principal "failed to appropriately address the
student-athlete's positive drug findings and to implement the policies and
procedures of the school's drug-testing program."

Murphy said he believes the program is fair and carried out evenhandedly.
He declined to release documents relating to the drug program, citing
student confidentiality.

Allan Gibson, whose son, David, played football at Mater Dei in the
mid-1990s and is now with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, was among those who
came to the school's defense Wednesday.

"I'm astonished that such a claim is being made," he said, recalling that
his son was barred from playing a key 1995 Mater Dei game because he had
not made up a detention. "And obviously, that's nothing compared to a
positive drug test. In my experience, Mater Dei really adheres to the rules."

But others disagreed. When the teen allegedly failed his drug tests last
year, it became well-known on campus. "[Parents] were surprised that
nothing happened," said one parent, who did not want to be identified.

The school's drug-testing program was created, Murphy said, to give
students "the opportunity to say no to drugs. The purpose is not to catch
kids, to kick them out of school, it's to give them an opportunity to say no."

A computer selects students at random for testing, Murphy said, but
students also may be required to undergo testing if they show signs of drug
or alcohol use. "That has been done very, very rarely," Murphy said.

Part of Azzara's duties at Mater Dei included collecting hair or urine
samples from students. She alleges in her lawsuit that she was relieved of
these duties on Oct. 21 of last year. Don Edwards, an employee of
Anaheim-based Integra Test, said his company began collecting on average 30
urine or hair samples a week from the school four days later.

The samples are tested by an independent laboratory called LabCorp, which
also tests college, professional and Olympic athletes, Murphy said.
Students who test positive are retested at least twice a month.

The school's testing procedures are continually refined, Murphy said, by a
committee that meets three times a year. The committee comprises attorneys,
judges, medical personnel and a parent formerly involved with FBI and CIA
drug testing.