Newsbrief:
South
Dakota
Legislators
Ready
to
Reduce
Administrative
Penalties
Against
Students
Caught
With
Drugs
1/14/05
At the request of former Republican Gov. Bill Janklow, in 1999 the South Dakota legislature passed a law barring any student caught with drugs from participating in sports or other extracurricular activities for one year. The law does not apply to students caught with alcohol, who face much lesser penalties, typically suspensions of a few days to a few months. Since then, more than 500 South Dakota high school students caught with drugs have been handed the year-long suspension. A second violation brings a permanent ban. But all that could change soon. With the state's prison system eating into the budget, the legislature convened a Criminal Code Revision Commission to examine changes in the laws. That commission has recommended that the student drug law be revised downward, so that students face only a 60 day suspension -- if they complete drug counseling or treatment. The Associated Press reported this week that it had polled South Dakota legislators and found majority support for amending the law as suggested by the commission. According to the AP, 56 percent of the legislators would vote to change the law. This is a marked contrast to past years, when lawmakers repeatedly rebuffed efforts to soften the law. Influenced by Janklow, the long-time powerhouse in state politics, legislators were content to let the law stand, despite complaints about its harshness and the uneven way in which it was applied. Janklow viewed the law as a valuable deterrent that treated all students equally. "The worst thing in the world would be to allow me as superintendent, or all 176 superintendents, to treat people different," he told high school students in 2002. "If you're a star on the basketball courts, it's a lot harder for us to penalize you than if you are on the bench. Pressures are immense." So the law-and-order Janklow determined to punish all equally harshly, and South Dakota solons went along. But now, after killing a motorcyclist while speeding down a farm road last year, Janklow is not only an ex-governor but an ex-con (he actually did 30 days), and his tough influence has waned. South Dakota legislators will have a chance to show just how much things have changed as they consider the proposed reform later this year.
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