Police distribute posters to 58 schools offering HS students cash to be drug informers,

[G_j]

http://www.newsday.com/news/printedition/longisland/ny-litips0512730105may04,0,6891763.story

Suffolk police offer students rewards for drug tips
BY CHAU LAM | [e-mail]
10:53 PM EDT, May 4, 2009

Suffolk police are encouraging high school students to send tips on drug activity by texting. (Photos.com Photo)

In an effort to ramp up its fight against drug abuse among high schoolers, the Suffolk County Police Department is offering students cash rewards to turn in drug dealers, along with a new way to deliver those tips - anonymous text messages.

In April, police distributed posters to 58 high schools in Suffolk, seeking voluntary participation in advertising the rewards in the Crime Stoppers program. They say the initiative gives students a way to help keep their schools safe and free of drugs.

"We know that these drugs are coming into the schools," said Lt. Robert Donohue, the commander in charge of the Crime Stoppers program. "We want to know how. We want to know who's doing it, inside or outside of the schools."

While some schools have embraced the concept, the plan is causing uneasiness among some parents, students and school administrators. Some fear youngsters will face retribution from those turned in or that some false tips might stigmatize people wrongly accused.

[ccharles000]

1. I don't know what to think of this

:dilemma:

-I am leaning towards it being wrong

[G_j]

4. offering HS students money to do police work,

sounds dangerous.

[ccharles000]

7. oh I agree

I just wanted to use that smiley.

[wroberts189]

12. This is terrible ...Think of it applied to a neighborhood ...

Kids across the street blast the music to high ...
Don't like it that your neighbor never cuts his lawn...

drop a anonymous text

Well you know Jerry down the street is selling weed as he is out of work .. you can cash in.

drop a text

..etc

Soon no one in the neighborhood trusts anyone else ...this would be corrosive to the community. And really kill off back yard barbecues :)

Indoctrination and precedent creep...teach it to the kids then apply it as adults.

[hedgehog]

2. Wonder how many students will face a strip search after pissing

off the wrong clique.

[Fumesucker]

3. Get rewards for dropping the dime on your classmates..

What could possibly go wrong with that? :shrug:

When I was a kid back in the dark ages, we were told this was the way the Commies did things.

Wait until the first time someone narcs on the Principal. :rofl:

[Lars39]

5. Mustache, brown hair, blue shirt...license plate #.....

I'd do it in a flash. :evilgrin:

[Fumesucker]

9. They can't keep drugs out of high security prisons..

A drug free America will not be a free America.

[wroberts189]

13. America ...the new East Germany. nt

[flvegan]

6. I think this might be good if it didn't seem to focus on ratting out the enduser.

If it were geared towards turning in the lower level dealers of the hard stuff, maybe they'd be more scarce. But to turn in some guy/girl because he/she has a joint or a dime bag just seems wrong.

[Fumesucker]

10. And of course, kids would *never* lie about something like that..

Or plant something in someone else's locker.

This has world class fail written all over it, the unintended consequences could be stupendous.

Edited for speling.

[havocmom]

19. I think a lot of kids are gonna get hurt

Drug runners are not a nice bunch. Cops bribing kids to do their work for them is gonna bring a lot of heartache.

[Fumesucker]

23. And of course, the kids who have somone "inform" on them..

Who have actually done nothing wrong won't be hurt in any way, right?

[havocmom]

24. been reading a bit around here. Maybe a name change would be helpful

or at least some fresh air? You are assuming a bit about my opinion here.

I hated being in school when I was a kid. I could not use the restroom for four friggin years because pot smoke made me very sick. I am not in favor of kids using drugs. But asking kids to do police work is gonna get a lot of kids involved in needless feuds and some will not have happy endings.

Some kids will be accused unfairly, yes, and that is another problem with letting adolescents who do not have much life experience for perspective do police work.

I see a lot of potential for pay-back violence with this asinine program. Cops get paid to do cop work. They also get training and (hopefully) rigorous supervision. Asking green kids to do that work for them is a recipe for disaster.

[Fumesucker]

27. Funny, when I went to school the nastiest bunch by far was the jocks..

I got my ass beat on a regular basis by jocks, I hated those fuckers with a passion. I still can't stand sports thanks to those jerks.

Next nastiest was the preppies, they mostly weren't physical but looked down on the rest of us big time..

I have three grandchildren, I would far sooner they "do drugs" than get caught up in our so called justice system because they have a good chance drugs won't ruin their lives and the "justice" system damn sure will.

Turning our schools into faux penitentiaries is not a healthy thing for our society.

[EFerrari]

8. This will nor end well. Kids that age are still learning to manage consequences.

There's 31 flavors of ways this can go wrong. :(

[bemildred]

11. Sounds like a recipe for lawsuits to me.

Lawsuits for police, lawsuits for schools, lawsuits for everybody. And a shitty education too, of course, but we got that already.

[stopbush]

14. HS kids are told to report all illegal activities for their own safety.

Things like kids bringing weapons and alcohol to school. Teachers, parents and law enforcement are freaked out.

Turning in kids for drugs still violates one of the rules of the playground for many kids, but many more kids who take their education seriously and want the school campus to be safe have no problem with turning in kids who are breaking the law.

That's a how it should be as long as drugs are illegal. It's also illegal to smoke and drink at school, even though alcohol and cigs are legal products. They're just not legal for minors. Most HSs have dress codes these days as well, mostly geared to keep gang wear and clothing that gets kids hormones racing off campus.

So, I don't have a problem with this. I do have a problem with weed being illegal. I think weed should be legalized, and it still should be illegal to have it on a school campus. Harder drugs could also be legalized and regulated as is liquor, but it doesn't belong on a school campus.

Kids are at school to learn. They should be able to do so in a drug-free environment. Period.

[Fumesucker]

16. It is illegal for a school official to lead a public prayer during a school sponsored event..

I saw that happen a number of times when my daughter was in HS.. No one reported it, not even me.. I live in the deep South and had no desire for my daughter to be bullied ostracized for something I did.

[stopbush]

21. You assume that kids are ostracized for turning in kids for drug offenses.

In my area, they're not, possibly because it's a surreptitious activity that is reported quietly.

Not so with a big ol' public prayer to Jeebuz.

[Fumesucker]

22. No I don't

I was just riffing on your statement that students are urged to report *all* illegal activity and pointing out that it isn't really so.

[Hanse]

15. Doesn't this just encourage the mob beatings of fucking goddamn narcs?

Yes. Yes, it does.

[Enrique]

17. i would be discreet in writing the number down off the poster

just some advice for the kids.

[eShirl]

18. hey kids! be a paid informant for fun and profit!

the more you snoop and spy, the more money for things to buy

[havocmom]

20. Is having to go into witness protection an excused absence

What the hell is the police dept thinking?

[Rex]

25. Sounds like some lazy cops.

[Mojorabbit]

26. When I was in school in the 70's

a narc was the lowest form of life. I am in my 50's now and still feel the same way. I feel the same way about those people who infiltrate protest groups for the cops. Lowest of the low.
I guess that was my indoctrination and it has stuck with me all these years. I can think of a hundred exemptions to this but as a general rule I don't like authorities encouraging kids to turn against each other.

[Vidar]

28. The police are more often part of the problem rather than the solution.

[Dogtown]

29. Laughing my ass off

Think of all the variations of "Blow me" that will be texted to the copshop.

This is a stupid PR gimmick, doomed to failure.

[JonLP24]

30. If this does work it will result in kids losing their education and possibly

spending some time in jail and with a conviction record. Then later on in life we punish them again because they have trouble finding work and selling drugs is a very effective way of making easy money. Anyways shouldn't have much of an effect I never brought drugs on campus, campus security and all.

[Are_grits_groceries]

31. Most of the kids I taught

hated people who narced. If someone ever found out who did it, there would be hell to pay. This may not end well.