USE OF DRUG-SNIFFING DOGS CARRIES COST, RIGHTS QUESTIONS

BERNARDSVILLE -- Calling it a "phenomenally complex" decision, the top
administrator for the Somerset Hills Regional School District last
Friday defended the pace at which educators are evaluating the use of
drug-sniffing dogs on the Bernards High School campus.

Superintendent of Schools Peter Miller said that the Board of
Education's policy committee is expected to make recommendations on
the issue at the next board meeting, to be held at 7:30 p.m. on
Wednesday, Aug. 25.

Members of the public who attended a roundtable hosted by the Somerset
Hills Municipal Alliance and Youth Services Commission on July 20 had
criticized school officials for failing to expedite using the dogs.

On Friday, July 30, Miller said the decision was "phenomenally
complex, and we'd be doing a disservice if we rushed it. We need to do
our homework."

Miller explained it was a "big step" for the district because of its
current open-building policy. "We don't even have locks on our
lockers, and we're discussing drug searches in the building," he said.
"We want to be sure we do it correctly."

Miller said he and Assistant Superintendent of Schools Glen Lampa are
researching the matter. On tap, he said, are discussions with other
districts in Somerset, Morris and Hunterdon counties that conduct
searches using drug-sniffing dogs.

"We want to know if those searches have been beneficial, what policies
they (the districts) have implemented and what procedures they've
used," he said. "After that, we want to see how they have coordinated
those efforts with their communities and respective law enforcement
agencies, and see what they would recommend."

'No Fooling Around'

Some administrators whose schools have been searched with canines
applauded the results in interviews with this newspaper.

James Riccobono, principal of Bridgewater-Raritan High School in
Bridgewater, on Tuesday said his school did a check three years ago in
conjunction with the Somerset County Prosecutor's Office and the local
police department.

While no drugs were found, Riccobono said the action sent a clear
message to the school's 2,500 students and the community.

"We told them that we're trying to provide students with a safe and
drug-free campus," he said.

Lisa Brady, principal of the 2,800-student Hunterdon Central Regional
High School in Flemington, agreed. "It sends a clear message to
students: We will not tolerate drugs in schools," she said.

Brady's district used dogs from the Hunterdon County Prosecutor's
Office to conduct one search in 2002 and found drugs. While the school
now performs random drug-testing of students, she said she would not
hesitate to use the dogs again should that prove necessary.

In Bergen County's Cliffside Park, School Superintendent Robert
Paladino said a search conducted at his high school in January 2003
yielded no contraband, but did shake up the 1,200-member student body.

"When kids see dogs, they know there's no fooling around," he
said.

He said on that day, county police using two K-9 dogs searched lockers
while the entire school was locked down.

Paladino said he had wanted to use the dogs for some time. When he
finally approached his board of education, members "agreed 100 percent."

Would he request another search at the high school? "Yes," he said. "I
also want to do one at the middle school. The times are
a-changing."

Riccobono said he and his board of education would probably use the
dogs again "because of today's society," but advised school districts
to take a "two-pronged approach" to drugs on campus.

"Checking and inspection must be accompanied by a proactive drug
education program," he said.

Raises Questions

The use of drug-sniffing dogs raises questions concerning logistics
and students' rights.

There are also questions about potential costs.

Although it costs as much as $30,000 to purchase, train and equip a
dog, the service is provided free to districts in the county,
according to Somerset County Sheriff Frank Provenzano.

But the county, at this time, has only one drug-sniffing dog and it
may not be available when needed. In that case a district could also
pay for services from an out-of-county provider such as Morris County.

Detective Sgt. Steve Seidler, supervisor of K-9 programs for the
Morris County Sheriff's Department, said his department charges for
out-of-county services.

According to Seidler, the fee is $60 an hour, including travel time,
for an on-duty officer, and $90 an hour for an off-duty officer.

Seidler said his three drug-sniffing dogs have had a busy year.
Searches have been conducted at both Morris Hills and Morris Knolls
high schools in Rockaway's Morris Hills Regional School District, at
Roxbury High School in Succasunna, and at the Morris Plains' Borough
School, a middle school.

The searches are usually conducted in partnership between a school and
the Morris County Prosecutor's Office, Seidler said, and typically
involve moving students out of a class so the room, including
students' backpacks, can be searched. Hallway lockers, gym lockers and
bathrooms are also checked.

Search lengths vary between 15 and 45 minutes, he said.

'Intimidating Climate'

Board members must tread an ethical tightrope when it comes to
protecting students' Constitutional rights.

On Thursday, July 29, Deborah Jacobs, executive director for the
American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of New Jersey, said the
non-profit group cautions schools about drug searches.

"We have not received a great number of complaints or inquiries about
these issues," she said in a statement e-mailed to this newspaper.
"However, we have occasionally heard from parents who complain about
the intimidating climate promoted by the presence of drug sniffing
dogs, and their school districts' emphasis on drug enforcement vs.
education."

She said the ACLU's stand is that students "should be
disciplined/investigated based on behavior. If their behavior disrupts
education or poses a direct threat to school safety, then discipline
is probably appropriate."

But Jacobs said the issue is best left for parents to deal with.
"Outside school disruptions, we believe that the issue of student drug
use is a private matter between parents and their children and the
school should not undermine the rights of the parent by focusing on
drug interdiction," she wrote.

According to the ACLU's student handbook, while courts have upheld
schools' use of dogs to search lockers because that type of search is
considered "relatively unobtrusive," the dogs should not be used to
sniff students themselves.

Seidler said students and dogs never meet during a search.

"The kids aren't even supposed to see the dogs," he said.