STUDENTS TELL ON BOYS WITH MARIJUANA

SANFORD -- Four elementary school boys were charged with
bringing marijuana to school after their classmates told teachers the
boys had the drug in class. Darla Cole, chief of the Lee County
Schools Special Police, said pupils at J. Glenn Edwards Elementary
School told teachers May 2 that three boys had brought marijuana to
school.

On May 3, teachers were told about a fourth boy. School administrators
investigated, Cole said, and notified officers. assigned to the school.

Cole said the students had completed D.A.R.E, an anti-drug education
program, the week before.

"It's a credit to the other students ... that they recognized that
their fellow students were doing something wrong," Cole said. "It's
very brave for a child to come forward and tell on a fellow student."
Cole said three of the boys were charged with possessing marijuana and
one was charged with possessing marijuana with the intent to sell it.
Lee County schools Superintendent Jim McCormick said some parents have
expressed surprise that fifth-grade boys had marijuana. "I think we
have to turn to society and look at the influences that are playing on
many of the young people across our nation, and even around the
world," McCormick said. "Unfortunately, certain things are more
available than they should be." Incidences where students in schools
around North Carolina possessed drugs increased by about 11 percent
between the 2004-05 school year to the 2005-06 year, according to the
state Department of Public Instruction. Elementary schools reported 36
incidences of students possessing a controlled substance in the
2005-06 year.

McCormick said the boys who were charged from J. Glenn Edwards
Elementary School are probably 9 or 10 years old. He said Lee County
parents should focus on the positive, especially the fact that other
students came forward to report the drugs.

"You have approximately 660 students in the building, and we had three
or four that had a problem, so I'd say those are pretty good numbers
on the positive side," McCormick said. "These students wanted their
building to be safe and secure, so it reinforces the fact that
students do care."