Pubdate: Sat, 20 May 2006
Source: San Mateo County Times, The (CA)
Copyright: 2006 ANG Newspapers
Contact:  http://www.sanmateocountytimes.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/392
Author: Todd R. Brown, Staff Writer
Note: MAP archives articles exactly as published, except that our 
editors may redact the names and addresses of accused persons who 
have not been convicted of a crime, if those named are not otherwise 
public figures or officials.
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?115 (Marijuana - California)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mdma.htm (Ecstasy)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?225 (Students - United States)

2 NABBED IN SCHOOL ECSTASY DRUG SALE

Police Say Student Took 8 Pills in Suicide Attempt

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO -- Students leaving South San Francisco High 
School Friday afternoon seemed to be in good spirits, despite the 
drizzle from overcast skies.  But their enthusiasm for the weekend 
belied a more somber situation: Ecstasy use is alive and well among 
some teens at the school.

It wasn't for fun, however, that a 16-year-old student there recently 
took an overdose of the drug. It was a suicide attempt involving 
eight pills -- the usual dose is one -- and it was sold to the girl 
by another student on campus, authorities said.

A synthetic and hallucinogenic stimulant, Ecstasy is common at 
weekend parties, students said Friday. One student, who requested 
anonymity, said it is even taken at school.

"It's getting popular, actually, around South San Francisco," a South 
City High tenth-grader said.

"A lot of people do it at parties. At people's houses, maybe a friend 
wants to spend the night and pop it.  They get all together, and 
maybe they want to do a half or a whole pill or whatever. Certain 
people supply it at the school."

Another 15-year-old student said it was common knowledge among the 
students whom to go to in order to buy Ecstasy.

A friend of the overdose victim told The Times that the girl wasn't 
out for kicks when she downed eight pills.

"She explained to me that she was going through a lot," she said.

South San Francisco police arrested [name redacted] and a 17-year-old 
South City High girl on Tuesday for allegedly selling the Ecstasy at 
the school to the 16-year-old student, who authorities said was 
hospitalized after the overdose.

Superintendent Barbara Olds said the sale and use of illegal drugs 
has been a serious problem in the school district this year.

"We've had more expulsions this year for drugs than past years," she said.

A few months ago, she said, a group of El Camino High School students 
were caught sellingand using Ecstasy.  Olds said the students selling 
the drug were expelled, but she wasn't sure what happened to the ones 
caught using it at a school dance.

Olds said this week's case is the first Ecstasy-related incident 
involving South City High students, and that the girl who allegedly 
sold the drug likely will be recommended for expulsion.

Olds and Principal Michael Coyne said the district has many measures 
in place to deter students from taking or selling drugs.

At the beginning of the school year, all parents receive a list of 
rules regarding drugs, and principals go to each class to talk with 
students about the punishment for drug possession.

In addition to having academic counselors, each high school has 
counselors who deal with "at-risk" behavior, and students are told of 
the dangers of drugs in their health curriculum.

Coyne said the school also has three campus control supervisors who 
run security, and a probation officer.

"My hope is this is a one-time occurrence and it won't happen again," he said.

An overdose of Ecstasy can interfere with the body's ability to 
regulate temperature, according to the National Institute on Drug 
Abuse. That can lead to damage to the liver and kidneys and 
cardiovascular failure, causing death.

The agency estimated in a 2005 survey that 4 percent of 10th-graders 
have tried the drug, down from 4.3 percent in 2004 and 5.4 percent in 2003.

After the overdose, police set up surveillance of [name redacted] 
home and arrested him and his alleged accomplice as they drove 
nearby. A probation search of [name redacted] car yielded seven 
baggies of marijuana, a scale, packing material and cash, according to police.

Chief Deputy District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe called the overdose a 
suicide attempt and said the drug sale occurred on campus for $80, or 
$10 a pill.

He identified the 17-year-old suspected of making the sale as a South 
City High student and Soto's girlfriend, and he said the pair have 
sold Ecstasy to other students at the school.

[name redacted] is in custody at the San Mateo County Jail in Redwood 
City in lieu of $50,000 bail and faces up to 15 years in prison.

He was charged Thursday with two counts of using a minor to sell 
drugs, which carries up to a nine-year sentence, as well as 
possession and sale of Ecstasy and marijuana, selling drugs near a 
school and driving with a suspended license.

The 17-year-old suspect was found with metal knuckles, a deadly 
weapon under state law, and booked at the San Mateo County Juvenile 
Correction Facility, according to police.

Wagstaffe declined to give further details about the girl's identity 
or the consequences she faces.

[name redacted], who Wagstaffe said is unemployed and lives with his 
mother, was convicted in March 2005 on a petty theft charge. He is 
scheduled for a preliminary hearing June 1 on this week's charges.
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MAP posted-by: Richard Lake