DRUGS NO WORSE AT OSCVI, PRINCIPAL SAYS

Federal Crown Stands By Earlier Comments

OSCVI principal Glenn Boisvert bristled Friday at a report that his
school's drug problems are worse than at others and said he's aware of
just three cases in which his students were charged with drug
possession since September.

If there are more students being charged at his school, that could
reflect the increased vigilance that administrators have paid to drug
problems there since about January 2008, Boisvert said.

"It was just a shock," Boisvert said after reading the story "Crown
targets OSCVI druggies" in Friday's paper.

Thursday in the Ontario Court of Justice, a teenaged student at OSCVI
pleaded guilty to possession of seven grams of pot and was placed on
12 months probation. He can't be identified by law.

Federal Crown attorney Clayton Conlan singled out OSCVI for the number
of drug cases he's seen involving that school's students. He estimated
he has seen more than 10 cases since last fall, when he became the
federal Crown full-time.

Mostly it's been marijuana but once he recalled cocaine and ecstasy
were involved. Boisvert said he's unaware of cocaine or ecstasy ever
being brought to his school.

Conlan stood by his statements Friday. He didn't have an exact count
of drug cases from OSCVI, "but I would be very surprised if it was as
few as three or four," he said.

He recalled two OSCVI students pleaded guilty on the same day to drug
possession at the school.

And he recalled before becoming the full-time Crown he defended a
student caught with ecstasy at OSCVI.

Conlan said in court and in an interview Thursday he wanted to send a
signal that anyone caught on school property with even small amounts
of pot would be prosecuted and a conviction would be sought - bringing
a criminal record for an offence that often results in something less
for first offenders.

Boisvert said his numbers don't include cases in which students were
caught with drugs but weren't charged. There would have been 10
students charged with drug offences since he started at the school in
September 2007, he said.

If the student is suspected of selling drugs, that brings a 20-day
suspension. Being caught under the influence of a substance the first
time brings a three-day suspension. Students' parents are also
notified, Boisvert said.

Boisvert said in his opinion there are drugs in all schools and the
amount at OSCVI is "no more than any other school."

He said he and his vice-principal have been going around looking for
kids with drugs since the beginning of 2008 and he suggested that may
be why the Crown sees so many going to court.

"We put our coats on, we go outside. They're in the back forest or
they're in the back school grounds."

The aim is to keep drug use as far from the school as possible, then
there's less chance a student will cut a class to do drugs, Boisvert
said.

He added police keep in touch with the school about anything that
might interest administrators. Two police officers are assigned to
liaise with the school. They don't patrol the halls but they do share
information, Boisvert said.

"They let us know if there's anything up as far as safety and that
sort of thing. Or what's going on in the streets of Owen Sound.
Sometimes it could be be drug-related. It could be graffiti-related."
Sometimes school staff request a police cruiser to swing by the school
to check a particular area, he said.

Sometimes neighbours report kids in the forest or teachers report
seeing kids headed that way. Other times suspected drug use is
reported by students to trusted teachers, who pass that information
along to him or another administrator, Boisvert said.