PALM BEACH COUNTY SCHOOLS USING DRUG DETECTION KITS

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- Students in Palm Beach County suspected of
using drugs are now subject to a new type of drug testing that's
administered with a swab and an aerosol spray.

Administrators at all 23 county high schools are being trained to use
the test whenever they have a "reasonable suspicion" that a student is
using illegal drugs, said schools Police Chief Jim Kelly.

The school district is one of 22 across the country, and the only one
in Florida, taking part in a free trial program that puts the drug
detection kits in schools.

It's supported by a $650,000 grant from the federal government's
National Institute of Justice, Kelly said.

To use the kits, administrators swab a small piece of chemically
treated paper over students' hands or belongings and douse it with an
aerosol spray. Within seconds, the paper changes colors to indicate
the possible presence of marijuana, cocaine, heroin and
methamphetamines.

District and school officials said they won't use the kits for any
other reason than to alert parents to potential drug problems with
their children. A positive result won't instigate a search, Kelly said.

All Boca Raton high schools and Atlantic High School in Delray Beach
have the kits, and they're on their way to every district high school
by the end of the year.

But the ACLU says the test is indiscriminate and violates students'
privacy.

"You really can't tell by looking at a student if he or she is on
drugs," said local chairwoman Ruth Gottlieb. "It's a judgment call."