LCHS DRUG SEARCH COMES UP EMPTY

Lloydminster Meridian Booster -- A dog with a nose for narcotics made
a stop at Lloydminster Comprehensive high school this past Friday, but
the search of 400 lockers for illicit drugs turned up empty.

That's not a bad thing, say both RCMP officers and Lloydminster Public
School Division administrators. Stuart Keys, director of education for
the LPSD, said he is pleased with the results of the search.

"Most of the procedures worked very well and people had done a lot of
homework before that," he said. "This (the results) would indicate
that students are not bringing drugs to school."

When a search is planned, students and staff at the school are not
notified until the dog and its handler -- in this case Cpl. Brian
Burke of North Battleford RCMP -- are practically in the building. The
students are warned at the beginning of the year that searches may
take place, and from there it's fair game.

"They know it's coming, they may get just a few minutes notice. The
division office would be aware, but that's pretty much it," said Keys.
"After the school administration is notified, they ask all the
students to remain in their classrooms and the students who are not
currently in class proceed to the cafeteria. There is no one in the
halls other than the dog handler and some administrative people."

Keys said the search is part of an overall drug-resistance strategy
from the school division. Beyond having the RCMP and a drug dog in the
school, staff educate students about drugs through classes and projects.

"There is a whole variety of things we do," said Keys. "There have
been students suspended in the past for having drugs at school, and
while part of that is a punitive action, but what we've also done is
lessen the length of the suspension if students are willing to engage
in a counselling process."

Sgt. Mike Yanota of the Lloydminster RCMP said there are still 600
lockers in the school that were not searched. He said the short notice
of the searches acts as a good deterrent for drug activity in the schools.

"We feel it was a very good initiative and it's following through with a
partnership between the detachment and the schools," he said.
"We're going to continue on. I'm sure that's not going to be the last
search there."

While students were in the classrooms at the time of the search,
Yanota said they knew what was going on. He said RCMP take every
measure to ensure the safety of the students while the search is being
conducted.

"The dog isn't just running loose," he said. "A (Lloydminster) member
is at the front and back and the dog handler is in the middle. It
creates a bit of a safety barrier."

As the search is conducted, the dog sniffs each locker for contraband.
No locker is singled out, said Yanota.

"He (the dog) knows what he's looking for," he said. "We didn't find
any drugs, but we still feel it was a very successful and positive
process. It's no secret -- it doesn't say that there wasn't drugs in
any of those 400 lockers, but it's a positive sign and maybe the
message is getting through to the kids at the Comp."

There have been incidents with narcotics at LCHS in the past, but
continuing initiatives like bringing the dog and handler in will make
schools a better learning environment, said Yanota.