DRUG-SNIFFING CANINES LOCATE MARIJUANA IN STUDENT'S CAR

VERNON -- School administrators invited police and a team of
drug-sniffing dogs into Rockville High School Friday and the dogs
detected no drugs inside the school.

One of the four police dogs did detect marijuana in a student's car
in the school parking lot, and that student was arrested.

Friday's exercise was the first time school officials used a
relatively new board of education policy to check the school for
illegal substances.

"The board of education last spring passed a policy for the use of
trained dogs to search on school property," Rockville High School
Principal Brian Levesque said. Friday "was the first time we
actually implemented that policy."

School officials alerted students and parents to the policy and made
it clear that at some point, dogs would be brought into the school to
search for contraband, Levesque said. Friday's search was unannounced.

"We were pleased with how this went," said Richard Paskiewicz, the
interim superintendent of schools. "We have a good working
relationship with [police] we will do this again."

The four dogs that searched the building came from the Vernon and
Manchester police departments and the U.S. Customs Service, Vernon
police Lt. Brian Smith said.

The student whose car was found to contain marijuana was identified
as [name redacted], a senior, who was charged with possession of less
than 4 ounces of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia,
police said. He was released on bond.