ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Friday, May 3, 1996 TAG: 9605030066
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOEL TURNER STAFF WRITER
NOTE: Above
When eighth-grader Donnie Thorne went to the office at James Madison Middle School to get his Ritalin one day recently, he got an extra pill from the bottle for a friend and classmate.
Thorne said he thought he was doing a favor for the friend, who he knew had taken Ritalin for attention deficit disorder while in elementary school. He said he never suspected he could get expelled from school for giving his friend the pill, but expulsion is now a possibility for both boys.
Ritalin is a strictly controlled, medically prescribed drug used to treat attention deficit disorder, which is characterized by hyperactivity, inability to concentrate and impulsive behavior.
Nationwide, the use and abuse of Ritalin have increased dramatically in recent years. Some teen-agers without attention disorders use it as a stimulant to get high, but it can be harmful.
Last year, a 19-year-old Roanoke boy died of cardiac arrest after taking Ritalin at a party. There have been reports of similar deaths in other parts of the country.
Some teen-agers said snorting Ritalin has become common at parties. They said the drug can usually be bought on the street for $3 to $5 a pill.
"My friend didn't say what he was going to do with it, but I thought he was going to take it," said Donnie Thorne, 14. "I didn't ask him what he was going to do with it."
The other student, who does not want to be identified, didn't take the pill. He has been off Ritalin for several years. Instead, Thorne said, his friend sold it to another student for $1.
School officials found out. The distribution or sale of Ritalin is forbidden under the school's drug policy. The student conduct code requires a 10-day suspension and recommends expulsion for distributing or selling drugs.
A school disciplinary review committee has recommended that both Thorne and his friend be expelled, and Superintendent Wayne Harris has concurred.
The case will go to the School Board for a final decision. The board usually approves the superintendent's recommendations on disciplinary matters. If the students are expelled, the board will decide whether it is permanent or for a prescribed period of time.
Donnie's mother, Margot, thinks expulsion would be an excessive penalty for her son, because he didn't know the pill would be sold.
"They are making it sound like he and his friend are drug dealers or something like that," she said. "He doesn't know about selling drugs.
"I'm not saying he shouldn't be punished, but I think this is too much. He's never been a troublemaker."
If Donnie is expelled and fails this year, he would be almost 16 before he could return to class. "He might drop out of school. He's talked about going to college. I can't see throwing away his life for one mistake."
She thinks school officials must share some responsibility because they did not closely supervise distribution of the drug. "I think the school is kind of at fault, too. If they had watched him when he went to get his Ritalin, this would never have happened."
Donnie's mother said she thought the procedure was for a school nurse or secretary to take a pill out of the bottle and give it to her son. Donnie said no school official watched him while he took two pills from the bottle. The bottle stays in an envelope, which is kept in a basket with the envelopes and bottles for other students who take Ritalin.
"It looks like they would be more careful," the boy's mother said. "I didn't know he was getting out his own medicine."
She said she has received advice from the Legal Aid Society of the Roanoke Valley on the case, but the agency is not representing her.
School officials would not confirm that Thorne was allowed to take the pills from his bottle without supervision.
"I can't talk about any student or the case. I'll have to refer you to the superintendent's office," said Stephen Mabry, assistant principal at James Madison.
Ann Harman, executive for student services and alternative programs, would not discuss Thorne's case because it is pending before the School Board.
But the city's policy requires schools to supervise closely the dispensing of Ritalin and other medications, she said.
Harman, who oversees student discipline, said school officials are reviewing the procedures to make certain that students receive only the prescribed number of pills.
Lissy Runyon, public information officer for city schools, said school nurses or other school personnel are supposed to distribute medications and to document what is given to students. She said students are not supposed to have access to their medications while they are at school.
Runyon said the policy review will be finished by this summer and any changes would take effect in the next school year.
"We are concerned about safety and liability of school personnel," she said. "We want to make sure all procedures are being followed."
LENGTH: Medium: 91 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: (headshot) Thorne. color.by CNB