This is a train-wreck:

https://www.marshallnewsmessenger.com/news/2016/may/19/parents-administrator-ruined-2016-prom/

By Bridget Ortigo May 19, 2016

HALLSVILLE - Some Hallsville High School parents demanded an apology and investigation from administration at Monday's board of trustees meeting after they said an assistant principal's actions "ruined" their daughters' high school prom experience on April 30.

Six Hallsville High School female students, some of whom are graduating seniors, were told they must submit to Breathalyzer testing at the school's junior/senior prom after an administrator said she received a "tip" that the group had been drinking before their arrival.

"We want the district to know, we aren't against Breathalyzer testing," Parent Scott Hawthorne said Monday. "Nobody wants these kids to be safe on prom night more than their parents do. We are taking issue with the way it was handled."

The group of six girls tested for alcohol consumption by Hallsville ISD police were part of a larger group of 20 male and female students whose parents chartered a private bus for the festive night from Platinum Limos in Shreveport.

The group had dinner at Enoch's Stomp and Winery before arriving at the prom.

"They got there (to prom) at about 9 p.m. because their dinner reservations at Enoch's ran late," Regina Rawls said Monday. "They were only at prom about 10 minutes before Assistant Principal Cari Bailey came and pulled just those six girls off of the dance floor and told them they had to come with her for a Breathalyzer because she got a tip from another student that their whole group had been at the winery drinking."

Wineries, like restaurants, are not legally allowed to sell or distribute alcohol to minors under the age of 21 in Texas.

"If you got a tip, which I don't think there even was a tip, I think this was premeditated by Bailey, but if you got a tip that a group of 20 boys and girls had been drinking, why wouldn't you test some of the boys too," Rawls said. "It was just our girls and they were targeted on purpose. That assistant principal has targeted my daughter and others in the group for years."

Bailey did not respond to a call for comment on Wednesday.

"After all of the girls blew a 0.00 on the Breathalyzer, the administrators called the charter bus driver, who was no longer at the school, to come back to the school and submit to a vehicle search of his bus," Hawthorne said. "They had all just passed the Breathalyzer showing no alcohol in their system. Why search the bus? I don't know if the Hallsville ISD police had a warrant to search his bus."

Rawls said the six girls were made to wait outside the school with the administrators and Hallsville ISD police until the bus driver returned and a search was completed.

No alcohol was found on the charter bus, Hawthorne said.

Platinum Limos manager Candice Moore said this was the company's first time to ever have one of their vehicles searched by police.

"I don't believe a search warrant was presented to our driver," Moore said Tuesday. "There was no alcohol on the bus. If our driver did consent for the search, he probably felt like he had no other option but to consent. He probably wasn't really sure what the protocol is."

The charter bus driver did not respond to calls for comment on Wednesday.

According to the Texas Attorney General School Safety Handbook, "School officials may search a student's vehicle that is parked on school property if they have a reasonable suspicion that a search of the vehicle will turn up evidence that the student has violated or is violating a law or a school rule. The scope of the search and the way it is conducted must be reasonable in light of all the circumstances that gave rise to the reasonable suspicion for the search."

The law does not specifically address the search of a vehicle that is no longer on school property and is not driven by a student.

Hallsville ISD Police Chief Terry Turner, district spokeswoman Carol Greer, high school Principal John Martin and Hallsville ISD Superintendent Jeff Collum did not respond Wednesday to questions about the district or school's policy regarding non-student vehicle searches.

They also would not comment on the type of Breathalyzer used to test students at prom, how a positive alcohol testing is handled and if parents are typically notified of testing at the student's request.

Turner, Greer, Collum and Martin also did not respond to say whether there was probable cause or a search warrant obtained to search the bus after the girls showed no sign of alcohol in their systems following the Breathalyzer testing.

"Between the Breathalyzers, which one girl was tested twice even though she blew a 0.00 both times, and then the bus search, this all took about an hour," Rawls said. "The girls said the cops were even pulling down stored champagne glasses that belonged to the charter company and sniffing them to see if they smelled like alcohol. This is after they all blew 0.00. The girls asked for their parents to be called during this and the police and principals wouldn't let them."

The parents said after the students were made to submit to the tests and searches in front of other incoming and outgoing prom goers, the girls were too upset to stay at the event and left early.

"For me, my worst nightmare just happened," Rawls said. "My daughter was at a controlled situation (the prom dance) and left, upset. Now where is she going to go or what is she going to do? Between all 20 of us parents, we spent more than $25,000 on prom and our kids got to enjoy it for 10 minutes."

Hawthorne said the girls should have been checked for impairment first before being subjected to Breathalyzer testing and never should have had to wait through a vehicle search after passing a breathalyzer.

"They can't ever get that night back," prom volunteer and mother Candy Henderson said Monday. "Some of them were seniors and this was their last prom. You always remember your prom and now this is what they will remember - being humiliated. It breaks my heart."

The parents said they want a full investigation, an apology and a policy drawn up regarding Breathalyzer testing to prevent this from happening again in the future to other students.

"I love Hallsville ISD. This is the best district for my children to be at," Rawls said. "This was one administrator, known for targeting student athletes, abusing her power. We all knew, when we heard that Breathalyzer testing would be at prom, we all knew our kids would be pulled out and tested no matter what, by her. We just didn't know it would all be handled this poorly."

Collum did not say whether the school had a specific policy regarding prom Breathalyzer testing.

"We don't need a policy on breathalyzer testing because we have a zero drug and alcohol tolerance policy across the district," Collum said Monday. "We will re-evaluate our district and campus policies regarding prom events and see if we need to revise anything in the future."

Collum defended the actions of the Hallsville ISD police and high school administrators, saying staff must act on every tip.

"When administrators get information, they have a responsibility to investigate and that's what they did," Collum said.

Hawthorne said what the administrators did was excessive.

"Other schools in the area that do Breathalyzer testing at prom use it as a deterrent, not a gotcha," he said. "They make sure all of the students know they could be randomly chosen for testing and they make sure it's truly a random process. Some schools test every tenth student that enters, some have a bag of poker chips at the entrance and you pull one as you go in and if it's a certain color, you get tested."

Parent Misty Johnson said she is also upset that parents weren't notified, before, during, or after the testing and search, even though the girls were requesting their parents to be notified. She said one parent even tried to enter the room where the students were being held during testing and she was not allowed inside.

Johnson, whose daughter was one of the six girls required to submit to a Breathalyzer, was working as a parent volunteer at the prom.

Newly elected Board President Jay Nelson told Hawthorne after his public comment during the meeting that the board would look into the incident.

"We will take these comments into consideration and if any policies need to be updated, we will look into that," Nelson said.

Hallsville,Tx? Lotta strict Baptist there.

There needs to be some administration and law enforcement folks fired. Many schools have gotten out of control and they now have private police. I'm Thankful my son graduates from college next spring and that we were able to send him to a good private school. To have to deal with a public school run by socialist idiots would be a nightmare.

Don't overlook this nugget.

"Between all 20 of us parents, we spent more than $25,000 on prom..."

WTF.?

Even though they think they are exempt, Babtists, police and educators have to follow the Constituition. I am sure there is a lawyer in Texas who will be glad to explain this in costly detail to the school district.

don't forget they always "look into it". How about they learn what the law (and common sense) allow. Police always take any opportunity they can to stretch laws and snoop. How did they get involved to start with?

Y'all are about to find out that THE most protected .gov officials/employees are school administrators.

let one of them kids get out into a private car all boozed up and crash and they'd be getting their asses sued off. its a no-win once there is any cause for suspicion. granted, seemed pretty heavy handed but those kids are alive this morning. could have been worse.

And here is why the school administration will get away with it... Always an "well, if..." excuse.

I'm not saying I'm taking the school's side in this. Just playing devil's advocate for a bit...

The Prom is a "school function", and with nearly all school districts, a student attending any school function is subject to search for drugs or alcohol, as is the bus, which in this case could be construed the same way as the yellow bus that takes the high school girls to a volleyball game.

Students taking part in a school function, as well as the transportation to and from that function may well fall under exemptions to a warranted search.

there is something in the Constitution about drinking? Damn, I missed that.

Guessing Cari Bailey the VP is one of those uptight assshole school admins that hates athletes because she was too fat to run and too ugly to be a cheerleader. Now she has to advocate for the fat and ugly and nerdy students...

THINK you are forgetting THAT all these kids are under 18 not allowing the parents access at all during the testing and interagation shpould be unconstitusional.

me thinks i would have broken the door down and then filed a suit against the school board.

norm

Norm, it IS unlawful.

Parents have the right to be with minors when things like that occur. Testing, or interrogation.

If parents wanted access to their kids and were kept from it, then there's a problem.

According to the article, exactly that happened.

The Bible, Sam. That was the Bible. You know, where the water turned to wine.

I'm betting the outcome would have been different if a parent, accompanied by an attorney, would have showed up. But, that's wrong too: parental rights should not have to be enforced by an attorney.

And people think not drinking is a victimless crime.

The most disturbing thing to me is that government controlled schools think that their rights trump the parents rights when it comes to the kids.

That needs to get lined back out. Soon.

Damn Yankees........wait, what?

George

Not long before the horse manuer spreaders show up.

I shared this with my high school aged daughter today. Asking her how she should reply if she was subjected to this kind of treatment she replied,"I want an attorney".

It's a sad commentary on our schools when part of prudent parenting is teaching you kids when to demand an attorney at school.

Yeah...and don't forget the only thing out there is from THOSE parents...this being their "worst nightmare" and all.

simply a case of an administrator getting even with kids she doesn't like.

And spoiled kids.

Almost like they deserve each other.

At least they didn't get tazed.

i'd a tazed 'em. in their frilly prom dresses and schitty rented tuxes. i'd a tazed their asses til they told me who bought them the booze. teach them damn kids not to get hell off my lawn.

Don't know if it's typical or not, but last spring the kids in Pendleton, Or were using tribal facilities for their prom. Every student attending had to blow before entry. County officers were holding down the door. Don't know if it was a school or tribal deal.

I thought drinking at prom was the law? Texas is weird.

Did you read the article? NO booze was found on the chartered vehicle. ALL of the girls tested 0.00 on Breathalyzer and were detained, Without Cause, afterwards. The Hallsville PD, at the urging of and in conjunction the school administrator, ran roughshod over everybody's rights.

facts don't concern me when there's tazin' to be done.

Breathalyzers at school? I never would've gradjuwaided.

Unless the parents signed off on this as part of the prom rules, this stinks, especially the denial of access to the children by their parents. That's not too far from kidnapping. School officials and the police commander that allowed this should be fired, then get their asses sued off.

The bus driver was under no obligation to return for the illegal search, but he did it voluntarily, so there's nothing there.

Funny thing here is that the parents went to the trouble and expense of hiring transportation for their kids to keep them safe, and this is their reward.

The same school probably provides free condoms and takes girls to the abortion clinics without telling their folks.

LoL!!!

The School can't win. They system is set up that no matter what the School does, it loses. The Lawyers win and the butt hurt win while the taxpayers pay the bill. If you want to go to Prom expect to be scrutinized. Prom has a history of killing kids and many getting pregnant or becoming fathers. If you spend $25,000 on a Prom, you are an idiot.

I would like to see it all end and the school gets back to educating. No funs stuff and no frills. Fu$& it!!

kwg

The article didn't say anyone spent $25,000. It said that much was spent between 20 parents. I guess you haven't bought any prom dresses lately.

You are right, I have not bought a prom dress for over 10 years. I was the SRO who posted myself at the front door so if a kid walked in and he or she even hinted at alcohol they got checked. It was a known fact it was going to happen. I had my suspicions when the kids would not look at me or acknowledge me as they passed through the door. Trying to ignore me was a dead give away.

If you saw me going in and you had been consuming, the odds of you getting checked were close to 100%. I had a number pull up and when the door of the car opened up, NO ONE got out. They would simply close the door and drive away. I had the full support of the principals inside. In fact, they would bring them to me and they expected a PBT to be done.

If they tested positive, the parents were called ASAP with the demand they were to come and pick up junior or the little missy.

I'm sure there were some disappointed parents but no one pitched a fit because the rules were up front. I can't help but think the rules were well known by the parents and the students before this whole thing blew up. Butt hurt people seem to have to blame someone else for their problems and complaints.

kwg

The excuses and rationale flies, but NONE of the kids popped positive. Zero. No alcohol found on the bus. None.

Justify that.

Once the girls blew 0.00, that should have ended it. The fact that it did not is the issue.

That's not being butt hurt. That's just being way out of line.

Once they blew 0.00, don't you think the attention should be refocused on the anonymous informer?

Or is it just standard operating procedure to keep looking until something is found...regardless of the validity of the information?

It's Texas

any ?s ?

Doubt this is over.

There it is. I have learned "that Admin hates my kid" is almost always pure BS, especially from doting parents. That clique of girls most likely has a history at that school.

But, if ya ain't gonna believe the breathalyzer, why use it at all? Blow a zero and you're off the hook, or should be.

The bus should have been searched as a matter of routine policy before it left the school grounds.

JMHO,

Birdwatcher

A whole lot to do about nothing!!

Well, what a surprise that the school .gov shill finds it to be all the kids' fault - for doing nothing wrong - and justifies the whole damned thing; even one ups the BS by calling for a pre-emotive, no-grounds search of a privately chartered bus.

Ya, that's me alright, public school schill

The bus was hired to haul students to a school event, ergo is equivalent to a school bus, and at something like the prom would be routinely searched, same as a yellow dog. If they didn't have that in place as a matter of policy, its pretty much a given that alcohol would be consumed on a bunch of those buses.

IIRC ANY vehicle on school grounds is subject to search, always, they run the drug and gun dogs by mine and every other vehicle on campus regularly.

Is it very likely that particular clique of girls had a prior history? Yep, I'd bet the farm.

But.... when the breathalyzer came back zero, they should have let 'em walk.

JMHO,

Birdwatcher

Still blaming on the kids. How convenient....

Too bad they weren't black or Mexican; you'd be up in arms to defend them.

Really? Where did I blame the kids? Point of fact I'm surprised they don't have EVERYONE blow when they enter the prom if they are gonna have anyone at all blow on just anonymous tips.

But yeah, I'd bet money those girls got a history.

And backing up a little; excluding the parent IF these kids were still minors and IF the parent really was excluded seems unconscionable, and really stupid on the school's part if that really happened.



Yo Sherlock, 80% of the kids at my public school are Hispanic of Mexican ancestry, gotta be at LEAST that percentage among those that get walked out in cuffs during the school day.

Birdwatcher

I remember Prom night.Over 45 years ago and I still remember my wood shop teacher pulling me aside and asking me"where is it".I didnt tell but he watched me close all night.

The whole thing is just a show of power. Gotta rattle the citizens once in a while.

What is shocking is how quickly they lie down.

You seem to have conveniently deleted the part where Birdy said the girls should have been allowed to walk.
Don't be editing the reply at will

I will say one of the hardest tightropes to walk is not profiling a kid based upon past behavior, which may have happened here.

This is tough because their past behavior is the best indication of how they will act in any given situation.

Not unusual for a notorious kid either to ACT like they have committed some transgression just to yank your chain, so that they can scream persecution afterwards.

Not sure what the situation was here, but sounds like these kids have had run-ins before, else there would be no history of that Admin "being out to get their kids" as the parents describe.

But.... once again.... if ya ain't gonna believe the breathalyzer why use it at all?

Hard to understand too they would test solely on the basis of anonymous reports. That sounds like an absolute set-up for complaints and legal action.

I'd need to hear both sides.

JMHO,
Birdwatcher

Absolutely spot on!!

kwg

You did get both sides... school admits they got zeros on the breathalizers and kept on after the fact and detained the students. If the school actually had a case they would have lawyered up and been real quiet.

Nonsense. The vehicle was hired by the parents, not the school, and is the same as a limousine or taxi. Do you think they can search every cab that drops off a kid at school? When asked to bring the bus back for a search, the driver should have called his boss, who then should have told them to suck it.

Everybody going in should have been tested, or nobody, just like the DUI checkpoints. Putting your children in a school doesn't mean surrendering your rights. If a child showed signs of intoxication, then the parents should have been called to supervise the process.

This is all about some dirty little snitch getting payback for some slight. The school, by falling for the hoax, became complicit. Seems like strange behavior from the folks that are always so concerned with protecting kids from bullying and other attacks.

Well this blows 10 points plus on the BS meter.

This administrator would be out on the street, if I was on the school board.

Just some more examples of self appointed self righteous bimbo abusing the power her job gives her... Like to see how well she'd be floundering having to hold a job in the real world, instead of the world of academia.

If she's fired, she'll probably be hired for a higher paying job at some leftist NeoNazi liberal college somewhere.

I would think just the opposite.

Sounds like one of them gray areas, they have the right to search a student-operated vehicle PARKED on school property on "reasonable suspicion" which is a lot less stringent on school property. I would imagine they have the right to search any vehicle, including a cab, where consent of the operator is given, as in this case.

I would expect in that small town the charter bus company does quite a lot of business with the school and so was inclined to cooperate. Their choice.



I've been in this environment for thirty years, and I can't say that's what happened. I feel like we ain't getting the whole story.

JMHO,
Birdwatcher

My impression has been that most of those in actual academia would get eaten alive in the front-line trenches of a typical public school.

Turns out there's 1,300 students in that high school, presumably the Admin in questions has been there for some time. I'd want feedback from the other 1,294 students and their parents before I'd throw that lady under a bus.

JMHO,

Birdwatcher

Yet again, it's the KIDS' fault for doing NOTHING WRONG.

Any further questions as to what is FUBAR with the public school system?

A lawyer would be telling them to STFU. I suspect they are playing damage control hoping not to bring in lawyers... but what do I know about Texas schools...

Didn't say it was.

1,300 students, 300 Seniors, prob'ly 100-200 students at that prom.

Out of all those kids, did the lady just "have it in" for those six particular girls as those $1,000-for-prom "worst fears confirmed" parents suggest?

Possible I guess, but not likely. In today's litigious environment we ALL have to watch our backs, routinely as a matter of course. This goes double for Admin, who invoke a lot more legalisms like warrantless searches every day than a regular classroom teacher.

Plus in a small-town environment like Hallsville I don't think there's too much like that anonymously slips by. I don't think either that Admin would last there very long if she was like that.

JMHO of course. My feeling is we ain't we ain't heard the whole thing yet.



What? ME?

If that could be proven true I'd have it laminated and put up on my wall above my desk.

Anyhoo... sure beats working for a living.

Birdwatcher

a good proactive tazing of all students and staff would go a long way. taz early, taz often.