Drug dogs in public schools-It's about time (Kalispell, Whitefish: crime, loan)

[magoomafoo]

Yeah for the Montana Drug Task Enforcement! It's becoming a common scene-local law enforcement comes into a school, kids are sent to the classroom and forbidden to leave while a dog is led through the school sniffing out drugs/alcohol. Our tiny little school K through 12 under one roof had the drug dog in recently. The pot use has gotten out of control. I know kids are using other drugs too, but pot seems to be the choice lately. I just have one problem with the drug dogs. Why can't the dogs go into the classrooms and sniff each kid individually? And why don't they have the dogs sniff the cars in the parking lots anymore? The dog that did come was directed at the student lockers only. I think most of the kids know not to keep their pot stash in a locker. Anybody know why they are not more aggressive in the drug search?

[jimj]

Money and politics. Police depts (at least here in the flathead) do not own any dogs, they contract out for the service. I'm guessing they're paid by the hour so are being used just for inside the school. In c-falls they do go out in the parking lots but they've cut waaaaaaaaaaay back on how many lockdowns the have.
I'm all for every city having their own dog or at least every major city like Kalispell, Whitefish etc whose services can be "loaned" to the smaller cities on a shared cost basis but is owned,trained and run by police. If anyone is going to be prosecuted for a crime investigated by an "officer" (K-9's are officers) then they should be a full fleged officer.

[GEORGIAINMT]

When I taught at Colstrip High School the drug dogs would come out regularly. It was on one of those "shared" or "loaned" agreements from another L.E. agency. This isn't something new.

[bigtrees]

No, it's not. The problem with keeping your drugs in your car is you can't sell them to other kids very easily. But if you keep them in your locker, it makes it easy to share your loot with your classmates.

And no, I agree that it's not new. They used to bring them through when I was in high school.

The problem with having the drug dogs check the cars is the dogs might start barking when they walk past the principals car. That'd be embarrasing. (Actually, it has more to do with it's legally more difficult to search a personally owned vehicle than it is a school owned locker. It can be done but is more difficult.)

[Gman2007]

I've been looking for information to back this up but have not been able to find anything...

A local officer here told me that there was a case recently (last couple of years?) that went all the way to the Montana Supreme Court regarding drug dog use in schools. Supposedly, some big wig had a dog hit on his son's locker and car in the lot and drugs were found. He fought the case which ended at the MT Supreme Court and I guess the ruling was that drug dogs can not make unannounced appearances at schools. They have to give everyone a weeks notice and are restricted in where to search. Like I said, this is second hand and I have not been able to back this up. Anyone else heard or remember anything about this case???

[Huckleberry3911948]

the word public school system has gotten out of hand. its a joke.
voucher system the sooner the better.

[jimj]

Originally Posted by Gman2007

I've been looking for information to back this up but have not been able to find anything...

A local officer here told me that there was a case recently (last couple of years?) that went all the way to the Montana Supreme Court regarding drug dog use in schools. Supposedly, some big wig had a dog hit on his son's locker and car in the lot and drugs were found. He fought the case which ended at the MT Supreme Court and I guess the ruling was that drug dogs can not make unannounced appearances at schools. They have to give everyone a weeks notice and are restricted in where to search. Like I said, this is second hand and I have not been able to back this up. Anyone else heard or remember anything about this case???

I'd say it's not true due to the fact when my wife worked in the local schools they had no notice other than an announcement over the PA that the school was now in lockdown and no one was allowed to leave where they were. This included all staff.

[bigtrees]

Originally Posted by Gman2007

I've been looking for information to back this up but have not been able to find anything...

A local officer here told me that there was a case recently (last couple of years?) that went all the way to the Montana Supreme Court regarding drug dog use in schools. Supposedly, some big wig had a dog hit on his son's locker and car in the lot and drugs were found. He fought the case which ended at the MT Supreme Court and I guess the ruling was that drug dogs can not make unannounced appearances at schools. They have to give everyone a weeks notice and are restricted in where to search. Like I said, this is second hand and I have not been able to back this up. Anyone else heard or remember anything about this case???

I vaguely remember something along those lines but it wasn't something that we learned in history or government class.

What Whitefish High School did to get around the rule is they announced the searches at the beginning of the school year and announced they would be checking all the lockers. So they limited themselves to a specific time (during the school year) and specific place (lockers) and continued it.

I'm making the assumption that the court case was prior to '03, but I think I remember something along those lines.

Now I don't know what they do in Muldown Elementary School......

[jimj]

Originally Posted by bigtrees

I vaguely remember something along those lines but it wasn't something that we learned in history or government class.

What Whitefish High School did to get around the rule is they announced the searches at the beginning of the school year and announced they would be checking all the lockers. So they limited themselves to a specific time (during the school year) and specific place (lockers) and continued it.

I'm making the assumption that the court case was prior to '03, but I think I remember something along those lines.

Now I don't know what they do in Muldown Elementary School......

I'd say not much if they've got 3rd graders smoking dope in the boys room.

[magoomafoo]

Our school announces it at the beginning of the year. The search last week was unannounced until law enforcement was in the school. How does the common community citizen go about cracking down on the one or two dopers? Our local law enforcement aren't highly motivated in doing this. A group of about 10 parents want to get involved. We have three kids here who push the dope on younger kids. I know this because my older kids hear everything and talk to me about it. They also want to be involved. The one kid drives around town looking for kids to smoke dope with (school nights until 1:00 am). She makes it so obvious. She is defiant, has that I don't give a s#%t attitude and her mother smokes just as much dope as she does. We have two main dealers in town here but don't know where to start in getting someone up here to do something. All we have been doing is monitoring what kids go in and out of the dope houses and talk to them or call their parents.