# An 11-year-old fifth-grader permanently banned from an elementary school in Oldsmar, Fla., for drawing pictures of a gun;
# A 12-year-old honor student in Mount Airy, Md., barred from extracurricular activities when she violated drug policy by sharing her inhaler with a fellow student having an asthma attack on the school bus;
# A 9-year-old handing out Certs mints in Manassas, Va., and two students taking them suspended for ten days for drug-policy violations;
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http://www.aclu.org/DrugPolicy/DrugPolicyMain.cfm
The "War on Drugs" is not working. After decades of criminal prohibition and intensive law enforcement efforts to rid the country of illegal drugs, violent traffickers still endanger life in our cities, a steady stream of drug offenders still pours into our jails and prisons, and tons of cocaine, heroin and marijuana still cross our borders unimpeded. Every year, it becomes increasingly obvious that the effects of our drug control policy may be at least as harmful as the effects of drugs themselves.
The ACLU opposes criminal prohibition of drugs. Not only is prohibition a proven failure as a drug control strategy, but it subjects otherwise law-abiding citizens to arrest, prosecution and imprisonment for what they do in private. In trying to enforce the drug laws, the government violates the fundamental rights of privacy and personal autonomy that are guaranteed by our Constitution. The ACLU believes that unless they do harm to others, people should not be punished -- even if they do harm to themselves.
We believe there are better ways to control drug use, ways that will ultimately lead to a healthier, freer and less crime-ridden society. Use the resources on this page to learn more and take action to protect the rights guaranteed to all Americans by the Bill of Rights. Our latest news releases are listed to the left; actions you can take now are listed to the right, along with additional resources. The most recent drug policy features are included directly below.
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RIO RANCHO, NM -- A Rio Rancho High School student suspended last month for carrying a small penknife on a key chain in her backpack can remain in school, the Albuquerque Journal reported.
But, according to the Journal, the allegation of carrying a deadly weapon will remain on her school record, the school board decided Friday.
Kara Williams, a ninth-grader, was put on long-term suspension April 19 after a school hearing officer and Principal Gary Tripp said she violated the school's unwritten "zero tolerance policy" for possession of firearms or other weapons.
School officials have said the policy prohibits them from considering exceptions, no matter how small the weapon.
The American Civil Liberties Union of New Mexico appealed Williams's suspension to United States District Court.
On May 3, Judge Bruce Black granted the ACLU a 10-day temporary restraining order against the district to give the board time to hear the appeal. The order allowed Williams to return to school for the 10-day period.
The ACLU also sought a preliminary injunction against the district over the policy. The group plans to continue its appeal to have the weapons incident removed from Williams' school record.
"We want her record to be expunged," Williams's mother, Paula Williams-Piazzese, said Friday after learning of the split decision. "Having a deadly weapons charge is a serious thing to have on her record." Jane Gagne, an ACLU cooperating attorney who is representing the ACLU and Williams, called the decision "half good."
"It is good Kara can remain in school," Gagne said. "However, the board's determination that she was carrying a deadly weapon is irrational, not correct and a disturbing conclusion."
Williams's parents gave her the penknife key chain because she had lost her house key. The Swiss-army style penknife also contains a plastic toothpick, tweezers, nail file and scissors. It is just over an inch in length.
Williams and her parents have said they did not know a penknife on a key chain would be considered a deadly weapon and if they had she would not have brought it to school.
On Friday, the board maintained that Williams violated the district's weapons policy and should have known the penknife was considered a weapon.
The board set her official suspension at 10 days from March 30, the day the penknife was discovered, to April 20. Williams was out of school from April 1 to May 4.
When Williams returned to school, she only could remain in school until May 17 unless the board voted to al w her to finish the school year. Williams now can stay in school until May 24, the last day of class.
"The fact that the board upheld an official suspension from March 30 to April 20 even though Williams was out of school until early May reeks of cynicism and indifference to the individual lives of the students under their care," Peter Simonson, executive director of the ACLU of New Mexico, said Friday.
Simonson said something is wrong in the Rio Rancho school district when the publicly elected board can hand down a decision that so flagrantly cuts against common sense and public opinion.
"Clearly the board is not making a decision on what is best for Kara and other students," Simonson said. "This decision is about preserving their authority and their ability to impose restrictions on families."