SCHOOL DRUG TESTING PROPOSAL MOVES THROUGH SENATE PANEL

OKLAHOMA CITY - A bill approved by a Senate panel Tuesday would give
schools legal authority for the first time to administer random drug
and alcohol tests to tens of thousands of students.

House Bill 1289 by Rep. Dale Smith, D-St. Louis, and Sen. Brad Henry,
D- Shawnee, authorizes schools to conduct drug and alcohol tests on
students who engage in extracurricular activities. That would include
such things as sports, band, debate, choir or any other
school-connected activity.

Henry told members of the Senate Judiciary Committee that some schools
already conduct drug testing, primarily on athletes. However, he said,
nothing in the law allows such tests.

Sen. Ben Brown, D-Oklahoma City, offered an amendment to permit random
drug- and alcohol-testing of all students.

Brown said Oklahoma ranks high among the states for drug and alcohol
abuse by students.

"We need zero tolerance and treatment for drug and alcohol abuse,"
said Brown, who operates a drug and alcohol rehabilitation center in
Oklahoma City.

His amendment sparked heated debate.

"The reality is, kids don't get much help from schools," said Sen.
Bernest Cain, D-Oklahoma City. "They just get kicked out of school.

"What are you going to do -- kick kids out of school and let them run
on the streets?"

The amendment failed on a 4-4 vote.

The panel approved the bill 8-0.

Brown said later that he hadn't decided whether to try to insert the
amendment in the bill on the Senate floor.

The bill has already been passed by the House of Representatives.

Brandy Thurman bill: The Senate Public Safety Committee approved 8-0 a
bill spawned by last May's shooting of Brandy Thurman, a Broken Arrow
teen-ager.

House Bill 1013 by Rep. Scott Adkins and Sen. Scott Pruitt, both
Broken Arrow Republicans, would add at least 10 years to the prison
sentence of anyone convicted of a violent crime that involves the use
or threatened use of any type of weapon.

The bill, which the House passed earlier, now goes to the full
Senate.

A Tulsa jury acquitted Jason "Casper" Filion last week of shooting
with intent to kill in the attack on Thurman, but it convicted him of
assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, a lesser offense. He
received the maximum sentence, 10 years.

Undercover police cars: The Senate Deregulation Committee voted to
prohibit police from using unmarked cars for routine traffic stops.

House Bill 1212 by Rep. Richard Phillips, R-Warr Acres, and Sen. Glenn
Coffee, R-Oklahoma City, would allow unmarked cars in drug
interdiction and other police work, however.

The proposal is opposed by Tulsa Mayor Susan Savage and several police
departments, including those in Tulsa and Oklahoma City.

It is supported by the Oklahoma Municipal League, Mothers Against
Drunk Drivers and the American Automobile Association of Oklahoma.

Coffee referred to several recent incidents in the Oklahoma City
metropolitan area in which a police impersonator in a car with
flashing lights has tried to stop women drivers. He said many women
are frightened of being stopped by someone in an unmarked car.

The panel approved the proposal 4-1 and sent it to the full Senate. It
previously passed the House.

Marriage licenses: The Senate Judiciary Committee also approved 8- 1 a
bill by Rep. Ray Vaughn, R-Oklahoma City, that would reduce the cost
of a marriage license to $5 from the present $25 for couples who get
marriage counseling before marriage.

Coffee is the Senate author of the bill, which the House passed
earlier. The measure now goes to the full Senate.