EASING UP ON ZERO TOLERANCE

Zero tolerance as a school policy for punishment is cracking-at least a
little."I'm overwhelmed that they finally saw the truth of this," Maria
Castillo told us. Last Friday, Tustin Unified School district decided not to
suspend and transfer her son, Michael Castillo, from Tustin High School to
Foothill High School.

The 11th-grade student had been accused of drinking a beer while playing
hookey and the district's zero tolerance policy mandated the suspension and
transfer. The punishment was delayed pending the appeal heard last week by
Assistant Superintendent Janis Jones.

But Mr. Castillo insisted he had merely touched a beer to put it down, but
didn't drink any. A Breathalyzer test by police registered 0.0 In a letter
to David Shores, Mr. Castillo's attorney, Ms. Jones wrote, "[I]t appears
that Michael Castillo's possession of alcohol was for the limited purpose of
disposal only. Therefore, it is my decision that extreme circumstances
existed which do not warrant Michael Castillo's involuntary transfer from
Tustin High School to Foothill High School."

He also will be able to play baseball - he is an accomplished pitcher - for
the first time since this matter began on February20.

"I believe that they did justice here," Mrs. Castillo said. "They saw a boy
who made a mistake with truancy, but then charged him with something that
could have destroyed his life. There's a big lesson for him to learn - one
tiny mistake can destroy his life."