MIDLANDS SCHOOLS REACT TO DRUG RAID

Search At Goose Creek's Stratford High Has Local Officials Feeling 'Nauseous'

Midlands school officials are taking note of last week's dramatic drug
sweep at Goose Creek's Stratford High, where officers charged into school
with guns drawn, frightening students and infuriating parents.

The nationally televised footage of children cowering on the hallway floor
made Lexington 3 spokeswoman Judy Turner Fox feel "nauseous."

"I'm sure it was very emotional for the students, for the parents and for
the faculty," she said. " ... That is not a scenario that any of us ever
wishes to be involved in."

But Turner Fox and other local school officials are hesitant to say a Goose
Creek-like search could never happen in the Midlands.

Fourteen officers and one canine unit responded to a tip of drug use at
Stratford High. Law enforcement didn't find any drugs or weapons.

Most local districts use drug-sniffing dogs to do unannounced searches
throughout the school year, regardless of whether they've received a tip.

"We do it to be proactive and send a message that we don't tolerate drugs,"
Lexington 2 spokeswoman Venus Holland said. "It's a visibility issue."

Local school officials try to minimize disruption by evacuating students
first. They say they would expect law enforcement to respond with weapons
drawn only if there was an imminent threat, such as a hostage situation.

"There is an appropriate way to do this and an inappropriate way,"
Lexington-Richland 5 spokesman Buddy Price said. "We feel like the
procedures we have in place are appropriate and working."

Holland said there could be other factors in the Goose Creek situation that
the public doesn't know about, such as weapons or gang involvement.

"I hate to second-guess Goose Creek. It's easy to be a Monday morning
quarterback," she said.Ridge View High parent Ann Humphries was stunned
when she saw the Goose Creek scene.

"That was extremely frightening," she said. "To see it on video was
graphically shocking."

Humphries said she doesn't want to judge law enforcement's actions since
she wasn't there, but said she would hate to see such a dramatic display of
force in her child's school.

"A better approach would have been more low-key because that could panic an
entire school and community," she said.

Local districts say they strive for a more quiet approach.

For instance, Richland 2 has drug-sniffing dogs scour hallways when
students are in class. The students are then called into the hallway so the
dogs can check classrooms.

If the dogs find something in a locker or book bag, that student is called
to the office.

"We want to minimize disruption," district spokesman Ken Blackstone said.

Blackstone said school resource officers also help because they get to know
students personally and know how to best handle the situation in school."We
don't ever want to infringe upon someone's rights unnecessarily, but you
have to balance that with safety," Blackstone said.