Pubdate: Sat, 07 May 2005
Source: Durango Herald, The (CO)
Copyright: 2005 The Durango Herald
Contact:  http://durangoherald.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/866
Author: Shane Benjamin And Tom Sluis

LOCKDOWN, DOG SEARCH SCARE SOME

A lockdown combined with another search for weapons and drugs with a 
trained search dog at Durango High School left some students rattled Friday.

Officials at Durango High School learned a couple of lessons from the 
incident. One, students aren't bringing drugs and weapons to school. And 
two, practicing a lockdown while doing a drug search with dogs may not be 
the best idea.

At 8:35 a.m., an announcement was made over the intercom of a lockdown at 
the school. Teachers locked classroom doors. Students congregated in the 
corners of the classrooms away from the windows. The lights were turned off.

An assistant principal unlocked the door to Jason Cline's classroom and 
"burst" into the room with a dog handler with a drug-sniffing dog in tow. 
"They told us all to get out and stand in the hallway on the opposite 
wall," said Cline, a senior. The room, then the school, were searched for 
drugs.

By 9 a.m. the search ended, but Cline said many students were unnerved by 
the search.

"All the students were scared for their lives. They feared a shooting was 
under way, especially with the recent shooting downtown," he said, 
referring to the April 14 shooting of Lori "Star" Sutherland. "They never 
told us what was happening."

Drug dogs began random searches at the high school and middle schools in 
April. Some parents support the idea, while others criticize it as too 
heavy-handed.

Friday's drug search at DHS was a success, said principal Greg Spradling, 
because no weapons or drugs were found. The mock lockdown was also a 
success, he said, because teachers and students stayed in their classrooms 
as directed.

But conducting a drug search and a lockdown at the same time may not have 
been a good idea, Spradling admitted. Several students and parents 
expressed concern about the way things were handled.

"We learn by these things," Spradling said. "That's why you practice. We've 
got to evaluate it and come up with a better way to do these things."

The drug-sniffing dog, a chocolate Lab, was inside DHS for 40 minutes, said 
9-R School District spokeswoman Deb Uroda. During that time, it had four 
"hits" - or suspected four students had drugs or weapons. Those students' 
backpacks were searched, Uroda said, but nothing illegal was found.

"By not finding anything, the word is probably getting out to all the 
students, and they're getting smarter and are not bringing drugs or 
firearms to school," she said.

State law requires schools to practice fire drills and lockdowns, she said.

The drug-sniffing dog was scheduled to visit Miller and Escalante middle 
schools after the high school, Uroda said, but the dog became sick.

The dog handler for Canine Associates International did not return a phone 
call Friday afternoon seeking comment.
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MAP posted-by: Elizabeth Wehrman