PROGRAM PAYS STUDENTS TO SNITCH ON CLASSMATES

PORTLAND (AP) A new school program will pay students up to $1,000 to snitch
on classmates who tote weapons, drink alcohol or use drugs around school.

Mayor Vera Katz unveiled the Campus Crime Stopper program Tuesday and said
it will be launched in three school districts around Portland.

The paid-informant program will operate similar to a crime stopper hotline
that's been around for 23 years. But the new telephone number is
exclusively for pupils who want to call the school police anonymously.

Similar programs have been started on school campuses nationwide, from
Charleston, S.C., to Thousand Oaks, Calif., but Portland students have
reacted with mixed feelings.

"That would just make everyone narc on their friends," said Nikki Dragoo,
16, a junior at Benson High School.

Others gave cautious approval.

"Some people would never report it no matter what, because they are in a
gang or something," said Joey Rambo, 15, a Benson freshman. "But if people
knew they could get money for it, that might outweigh (the risk). I would
call without a reward if I knew about it."

Ben Canada, superintendent of Portland Public Schools; Barbara Rommel,
superintendent of David Douglas School District; and Peter Norbye,
superintendent of Parkrose School District, praised the program.

Frank Hooper, a member of the Crime Stoppers board of directors, said
informants would remain anonymous. He said even before Tuesday's
announcement, word of the program leaked out, and one case was solved.