SMELLS SUSPICIOUS

Funny how a faint scent can overpower good common sense. Administrators at
a local Catholic high school needed only the slightest whiff of weed to
justify trampling a student's rights and tarnishing his reputation.

In an appalling case of strict, sound rules gone mad, a 15-year-old student
was suspended from class when a police drug dog detected the smell of
marijuana on his jacket.

There was no bag of weed, no joint, no pipe -- only the apparent scent of
pot residue.

Talk about a phantom menace.

Full facts are rarely disclosed in cases of this kind, where institutional
masters clam up under the cloak of protecting student privacy.

So while we aren't privy to all the fine details, what facts we do know are
highly disturbing.

The incident raises questions that demand answers from school authorities
or elected trustees -- and we await their prompt, public response.

We deserve an explanation for why the random police searches being
conducted at our public schools are even necessary in the first place.

Authorities have a right -- indeed, a duty -- to ensure our schools are
safe and free of drugs and weapons.

Any suspicions must be diligently reported, investigated and dealt with
accordingly.

But schools are not airports.

They are not busy places filled with transient strangers, but institutions
where a family of students and teachers meet daily for learning and
socialization.

Somehow, an armed officer with a sniffing narcotics dog doesn't fit nicely
in this picture.

The student's suspension becomes more galling when you consider his
punishment was based on evidence that was dubious at best, and non-existent
at worst.

Last year, a Cornwall teenager grabbed national attention when he was
expelled and incarcerated for penning a violent short story about blowing
up a school. The "Twisted" author became a celebrated advocate for freedom
of expression and youth rights.

This time, it is Christopher Laurin who has publicly spoken out -- and
become the latest youth cause celebre.

Without knowing all the facts, we're not sure if these students are
necessarily heroes. But their cases serve as a good reminder that basic
civil rights do not diminish or accrue with age.

An overzealous, undercontemplated rush to keep our schools safe has
hammered home this very important message.

School authorities reacted too harshly and too rashly.

We hope the older and so-called wiser adults are just as quick to rethink
the policy of random student searches -- and just as fast to issue a
much-deserved apology.