SNOHOMISH SCHOOL DISTRICT DROPS DRUG TESTING FOR ATHLETES

The first Snohomish County school district - and one of the first in the
state - to randomly test student athletes for drugs and alcohol has decided
a year later to do away with the practice.

Granite Falls School District board members this past weekend abandoned the
policy, which was eagerly adopted only last July, for fear of a costly
legal battle they might not win.

"Basically, we got two letters from two different attorneys. Both of those
letters gave us concern that if (the policy) was challenged in court, that
. . . there'd be some doubt as to the success," said district
Superintendent Gary Wall.

"When you get a letter from your insurance company and your own attorney,
then you have to make a decision: Are you willing to spend the money or
not? Our board chose the not."

Although no lawsuits on the matter were pending, the letter from an
attorney for the district's insurer, Puget Sound Risk Co-op, said the
company would not cover legal fees if the district were sued over the
policy, leaving the 1,825-student district to foot the bill itself.

"I don't think the taxpayers in Granite Falls should be paying half a
million (dollars) for a legal action," said Bob Quarterman, School Board
chairman.

The decision was a strictly financial one, said Quarterman, who called the
one-year trial run of random drug testing a success.

"We had the best year we've ever had," he said. "One student set a state
record in the high jump. Our girls team went to state for baseball. In
track, we had seven girls go to state. The basketball team almost went to
state."

The policy made sports teams more cohesive, Quarterman said, and forced
students to decide whether they'd rather play sports or do drugs.

Only three athletes - two girls and one boy - tested positive for drugs
last year, Wall said, and were subject to a 30-day suspension from
competing. "We had at least two parents who were very, very grateful. This
opened up their eyes," Wall said.

"And we had student athletes who were not using drugs because of the
policy; they told us that. We also had student athletes referred to
treatment because of the policy, and athletes who, because of the policy,
referred themselves to treatment to help them to keep off drugs. I think
our data show there was no doubt we were helping kids."

In contrast to district officials' regret over the decision, officials at
the state American Civil Liberties Union were enthusiastic.

"We're very pleased," said Jerry Sheehan, state ACLU legislative director.
"It's the appropriate thing for them to be doing constitutionally."

The ACLU has maintained that random drug tests at school violate state
constitutional protections against unreasonable searches, despite a 1996
U.S. Supreme Court ruling which allowed testing of student athletes.

"All courts that have looked at the question have clearly said a drug test
is a search, so there's no argument about that," Sheehan said. "And the
Washington Supreme Court in a case (several years ago) we brought against
the Renton School District said very clearly the government, and that
includes school districts, is prohibited from search without cause."

Sheehan said as far as the ACLU was aware, just one school district in the
state - Burlington-Edison in Skagit County - was continuing random drug
testing. A flurry of districts considered such policies last year, then
backed away. Granite Falls was the fourth district to conduct such tests.

"We had a discussion last year, a pretty vigorous one, with Northshore and
they backed off," Sheehan said. "Also the Blaine School District; their
insurer told them the same thing."

Blaine dropped its plan to test last October. That district also is insured
by Puget Sound Risk Co-op.

Nancy Montgomery's phone message number is 425-745-7803. Her e-mail address
is: nmon-new@seatimes.com

Checked-by: Mike Gogulski