DRUGS IN THE DORMS

Residents Use Substances Despite Hall Policy

One K-State student who lives in the residence halls keeps a hidden cigar
box with various drug paraphernalia in it. Along with a baggie of marijuana
and a small green and black pipe, the box contains what appears to be
something homemade.

"That there is a 'doob tube,'" the student explains. "It is a toilet paper
roll stuffed with dryer sheets. You blow smoke through it and it absorbs
the smell, and the smell of dryer sheets comes out the other end."

The student, who wished to be identified by the false name of Jack, is not
alone in using drugs in the residence halls.

Elizabeth, a former occupant of the residence halls, also smoked marijuana
in her room. She, too, referred to her "doob tube" when explaining how she
got away with it.

"We put a towel under the door and cracked a window. We only did it for the
first couple of weeks of school, though," she said. "People started
complaining about the smell."

Officials are aware of the situation.

Capt. Robert Mellgren of K-State Police said drug use in the residence
halls might happen, but it doesn't seem to be an overwhelming problem.

"We rely on self-patrol from the residence hall directors," he said. "We
all know drugs are there, but right now it appears not to be a problem."

When it comes to dealing with residents caught with illegal substances,
procedures are followed, just as would be done in any other type of
residence setting, Mellgren said.

Residents have the right to refuse a search, and police have the right to
go out and get a search warrant, he said.

"We will do what we need to do and follow the law," Mellgren said.

Jack said marijuana is the only drug he has ever used. On average, he
smokes in his room three times a week, sometimes with guys from his floor
and sometimes with friends from off-campus, he said.

"There's not any spectacular stories about getting high in the dorms," he
said. "We just wait until fairly late, and be careful about the smell when
we smoke, and then sit around and watch movies and eat."

Jack has recently tried to grow marijuana himself, cultivating two seeds on
a small plastic plate hidden behind his computer.

"That one's sprouting right there," he said, pointing. "I don't know,
though -- they get huge. I don't think we'll be able to grow them in here.
I'll grow them when I go back home this summer."

Marijuana should be legalized, Jack said, and it should be up to the
individual how much he or she uses.

"Just like alcohol, you know -- there's alcoholics, but they're not going
to make it illegal because of them to ruin it for everyone else who drinks
responsibly," he said.

For now, however, marijuana remains illegal, and Jack and other users have
to face the consequences if they are caught.

Sarah Smith, freshman in elementary education, said drug use in the
residence halls is wrong.

"It's not the smartest thing a person can do, but if they are going to do
it, they shouldn't do it in the dorms," she said. "People shouldn't be
exposed to it if they don't want to.

"I have never had a run-in with anyone where it was totally obvious, but I
have heard that there are floors where it reeks," Smith said. "I haven't
heard anything about other drugs like cocaine. I guess they are less
obvious, so it's not as likely you'll get caught."

Eric Neilson, fifth-floor Marlatt Hall staff assistant and senior in
advertising, said random searches are not allowed in the residence halls.

He said staff members on duty do two sets of rounds every night.

"If you're on rounds and you smell something like pot, or anything like
that, you'll go ahead and check that out," he said. "If you're sure that's
what it is, the first thing we do is contact our director of the hall. He's
been trained in it, and he knows what it smells like. If it's a strong
enough smell to where it'll still be there when the cops show up, we call
the cops."

Neilson said he couldn't talk about any specific drug incidents in the
residence hall.

The K-State Police respond to calls from the residence halls, said Lt.
Richard Herrman, campus police patrol commander. The Riley County Police
Department does have jurisdiction over the residence halls, but campus
police respond because the campus is their primary responsibility, he said.

Campus police officers are commissioned law enforcement officers and have
the authority to make arrests. Herrman said the only reason campus police
officers would call the RCPD would be if the problem were very large.
Otherwise, they handle drug situations in the residence halls themselves.

Other drugs have been found, but marijuana is the most prevalent, Herrman said.

"Because of its odor, staff can easily pick up on marijuana," he said. "But
you could be sitting in your room doing a line of cocaine, and there is no
way we would ever know about it unless someone witnessed you doing it and
decided to notify us."

As far as which dorms have problems, Lt. Herrman said he couldn't say that
one specifically is a problem area.

"The all-male or coed halls are the ones that we get the most calls on, as
opposed to all-female halls," he said.

There is also no age trend, Herrman said.

"It affects any age group in the residence halls -- not just freshmen," he
said.

Campus police have a zero-tolerance policy on drugs in the residence halls,
Herrman said.

"We don't issue warnings for any illegal substances. When we are alerted,
we do an investigation, and, if necessary, make arrests," he said. "Then,
we proceed through the court system."

Brenda Jordan, assistant Riley County attorney, said Riley County does not
take drug use lightly.

With marijuana, the first offense is a misdemeanor and the second is a
felony, she said. Punishment is up to one year in jail and up to $2,500 in
fines plus court costs and fees and, if applicable, attorney fees.

If there are no extenuating circumstances, the offender will face 30 days
of jail time, $250 in fines, $25 in probation costs, $116 in court costs, a
possible $125 evaluation fee and, if the Kansas Bureau of Investigation
tests the substance, at least $400 in testing fees, she said.

"Intent to distribute charges have higher fines, more prosecution and more
jail time," she said.

Other drugs, like methamphetamines or cocaine, have different consequences,
Jordan said.

"The charge is automatically a felony," she said. "The offender will go to
prison instead of jail, and the court costs are more."

Derek Jackson, assistant director of Housing and Dining Services, said a
drug arrest can break the resident's contract with Housing and Dining, but
doesn't always. He said it's at the discretion of the department.

"We look at what your intent was," Jackson said. "We're concerned about the
environment you're contributing to. As a resident, we're interested in
knowing if you're a risk to yourself or others, and how great that risk is."

Jackson said that sometimes the department modifies a contract, which means
it moves a student to a new residence hall.

"Once the department determines that they're not a severe risk to others
around them, we try to help them begin brand-new," he said. "When we
re-establish them someplace else without a lot of stigma hanging over them,
they're able to begin anew and make different friends."

This approach has been very successful, with no repeat offenders, Jackson said.

Housing and Dining does not have its own drug rehabilitation program.
Instead, officials refer students to university resources such as
University Counseling Services, the Family Center and the Dean of Student
Life office, he said.

Jackson said 1997 was his first year in his current role, and that when he
came in, the department put more focus on preventing drug use.

"We thought it was becoming more commonplace, so we took a harder stance on
it," he said.

Still, despite the risks, Jack and others like him choose to spend their
time using drugs in the halls for their own reasons.

"Recreation or relaxation," Jack said. "It's not a dependency. I don't feel
like I need to or have to -- it's just -- I don't know. I'll have to think
about that one, and then answer it for myself."

Arrests

Drug arrests in the residence halls by year:

1997: 0

1998: 3

1999: 14

2000: 11

2001: 8

2002: 9

Source: Information provided by K-State Police. Figures before 1997 not
available. These figures only reflect residents who were actually arrested
in the residence halls, not those residents who were arrested for drugs
off-campus.

Drug use

The Core Alcohol and Drug Survey 2000 surveyed all college campuses.

(the first number is the percentage of students who had used in the last
year, the second is the percentage who had used in the last 30 days)

Tobacco 47 percent, 35.8 percent

Alcohol 84.1 percent , 72.1 percent

Marijuana 33.6 percent, 20.0 percent

Cocaine 5.1 percent, 2.1 percent

Amphetamine 7.6 percent, 3.8 percent

Sedatives 4.1 percent, 1.9 percent

Hallucinogens 6.6 percent, 2.0 percent

Opiates 1.5 percent, 2.7 percent

Inhalants 1.9 percent, 0.8 percent

Designer Drugs 9.1 percent, 3.7 percent

Steroids 0.8 percent, 0.6 percent

Other 2.5 percent, 1.1 percent

The study was conducted at random times during the year by randomly
selected students comprised (in percentages) of 29.4 freshmen, 24.7
sophomores, 22.2 juniors, 20.6 seniors, 0.4 not seeking a degree and 0.7
other. Of those students, 39.6 were male, and 60.4 were female; 59.0 were
age 20 and under, and 41.0 were 21 and older; 46.8 lived on-campus, and
53.2 lived off-campus.