Teacher Forces Kids To Snort Smack
Well, not exactly. In fact, there was no heroin involved. There were no children involved. And there was no drug-taking involved.
Art teacher Melinda Herrick's car was searched (the drug paranoids in Houston had drug dogs sniffing around the parking lot) and...two Xanax were found!
Wooo! Somebody might get really, really relaxed and...fall asleep in some tempera.
From KHOU:
The district said Herrick, 59, was unable to produce the proper documentation for the pills and was taken into custody.She was charged with possession of a controlled substance in a drug-free zone.
Her bond was set at $2,000, and her car was towed away from the school.
Yes, apparently, the school has one of those asinine "just say no to reasoning" policies, and prohibits drugs of any kind on campus.
Here's an excerpt from the UPI story of what happened:
Former Teacher of the Year honoree Melinda Herrick was suspended after police found two Xanax pills in her car while it was parked on the campus of Roberts Elementary School, the Houston Chronicle reported Wednesday.Assistant District Attorney Joe Vinas of Harris County says he dismissed the charges after deciding he could not prove the case against Herrick beyond a reasonable doubt.
Attorney Kent Schaffer said he provided evidence Herrick did not know the anti-anxiety drug was in her car.
Schaffer also said his client passed a polygraph test, a urine test and a hair follicle test showing she did not use drugs.
Also, her car had been in a repair shop for a month, and her daughter had driven it.
But, let's say these were hers -- what of it? I know, prescription medicine is supposed to go to the person it's prescribed for. But, when I've been in France, a friend has sometimes given me a couple of her Ambien (although I've found I prefer Benadryl now as my jet-lag recovery sleeping pill). I'm an adult, I'm in good health, and I've taken Ambien before, but it's not one of Kaiser's list of generics. I'm not selling Ambien to schoolchildren; I just wanted to go to sleep and wake up at 9 a.m. instead of 3 a.m. Paris time.
Regarding Herrick, the drug charges have been dismissed for lack of evidence. Too bad there's no lack of assholes in the Houston school district, coming up with policies like this one.
Hey, parents -- since more and more schools are instituting policies like this, be prepared for your 14-year-old to be cuffed and thrown in the slammer next time she pops a Midol.
Here is a question.
How did the cops get into her car to fnd the Xanax, if the drug dogs didnt find anything?
lujlp at May 1, 2009 3:01 AM
More brainlessness -- a web of inviolable rules and regulations set up so that nobody gets sued, or is required to show wisdom, or use judgment.
old rpm daddy at May 1, 2009 4:30 AM
"Yes, apparently, the school has one of those asinine "just say no to reasoning" policies, and prohibits drugs of any kind on campus."
--------
It's too bad we are losing this reasoning in many areas of our society.
Also, the damage to this ladies reputation cannot be repaired, as they will not vidicate her with the same zeal they were willing to prosecute her with.
False accusations are damaging in all parts of our society.
David M. at May 1, 2009 6:06 AM
A very important lesson was learned, at least by those who paid attention. It wasn't the one the school intended to teach.
"One size fits all" works as well for situations requiring judgement as it does for clothing.
MarkD at May 1, 2009 7:43 AM
oh, you KNOW they were thinkin' "good, now we have an adult to crucify, so that everyone will know we are really getting serious about drugs".
Yeah, I'd be wantitng to know where the search warrant was. I dunno if a dog can even smell a pharma like that... unless the dog was scenting something else, but that was all the found.
More proof to children that adults are stupid...
SwissArmyD at May 1, 2009 7:45 AM
So what would have happened if she had a prescription bottle of the stuff?
This is as stupid as the cheerleading coach fired for having done the Playboy pics.
All the public school system is doing is teaching kids how to be drones.
Jim P. at May 1, 2009 12:42 PM
"Teacher Smacks Kids to Force Snort"
That's how I remember it. I went to parochial school.
Jay R at May 1, 2009 4:20 PM
It's also a bit of an older story: enter "treffly coyne" into google. I had hoped that more people would be outraged over the amount of control the government wants to exert over parents. In vain, as it turns out - if you follow up the blog posts, the majority seem to be in favor of monitoring your children's every move.
bradley13 at May 2, 2009 6:09 AM
Hey, parents -- since more and more schools are instituting policies like this, be prepared for your 14-year-old to be cuffed and thrown in the slammer next time she pops a Midol.
Actually, that kind of thing is happening already: http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/04/19/scotus.strip.search/
The Other Lily at May 5, 2009 5:07 PM
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