Teen Faces Expulsion and Felony For Loaning Girlfriend Medicine

KTRK ABC-13 ^ | 10-8-03 | Chris Adams

[dogbyte12]

ABC13 Eyewitness News
(10/08/03 - CONROE) — There's controversy over a school's zero tolerance drug policy. Some say it's gone too far. A 15-year-old faces expulsion after giving an inhaler to his girlfriend during an asthma attack that happened at school

Boyfriend and girlfriend, 15-year-olds Brandon Kizi and Andra Ferguson are both asthma sufferers and both students at Caney Creek High School. At least, they were, until Andra began suffering an asthma attack at school.

"I couldn't breathe, and I was just very short of breath," recalled Andra. "My chest was tightened up and it was hurting."

Brandon described the incident. "Her face was turning a little reddish-pink and she looked pale, as far as I could see. I loaned her my inhaler. I walked her to the nurse's office and loaned her my inhaler."

That's when the trouble started. The school nurse called the school police, who arrested Brandon. They charged him with a felony, namely distributing a dangerous drug for loaning out his prescription inhaler. Andra's mother thinks that's wrong.

"His (inhaler) is the very same thing. And he has had my permission to give her that medication any time she forgets it," said Sandra Ferguson.

But school officials say that Brandon had been warned about loaning his inhaler, and that new state laws mean their hands are tied when it comes to zero tolerance and drugs.

Principal Greg Poole told Eyewitness News, "It's hard, it's difficult. We certainly don't look forward to expelling any kid. But then you have to consider a kid takes the medication and has an allergic reaction, and then we have to deal with that issue. So, yes, there is no discretion at this stage."

Brandon now faces mandatory expulsion from school and criminal charges in juvenile court. His mother is outraged.

Theresa Hock said, "It's so unfair. My son was helping her out. And now he's facing criminal charges. Would they rather have had her die than my son to help her?"

Brandon has a hearing on Friday to determine how long he'll be expelled for. In addition, he still has to go to juvenile court to deal with that felony charge.

[SolutionsOnly]

Whatever happened to basic common sense?

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[Dr. Frank fan]

But school officials say that Brandon had been warned about loaning his inhaler, and that new state laws mean their hands are tied when it comes to zero tolerance and drugs.

Translation: They care more about hanging on to their taxpayer funded jobs than doing the right thing. And they're willing to expel a perfectly-innocent kid for the sake of avoiding risks to their public trough jobs.

[proxy_user]

If you want common sense, ask for a jury trial.

[small voice in the wilderness]

...now IF he had put the inhaler inside a condom...

Common sense has completely left the building.

[JZoback]

Whatever happened to basic common sense?

Federal Statue PC # 391.23 sub chapter 672.14 excluding all of 245.74 and subpart B and C of 358.98 was passed into law prohibiting any and all common sense.

245.74 and subpart B and C of 358.98 applies only to your local Congressional representative who belong to the Democratic party

I'm surprised you didn't know !!!

[Senator Pardek]

If this policy keeps some drug-addled teenage junkie from offering his wares to my kid, I'm all for it. Break the law - pay the price! I wonder what other junk these filthy runts were inhaling...

[jocon307]

Unfortunately Common Sense has gone before.

www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/971518/posts

[Celtjew Libertarian]

Last I checked, saving someone's life was a legitimate defense for acts otherwise against the law.

[joesnuffy]

This is completely insane
no common sense to the law ,the idiot nurse, the cops ,the DA
By the grace of God perhaps a judge will common decency will throw this out
I doubt it..as they seem to be rare these days
But to punish a young man who merely opted to help his friend -out of compassion for her suffering-?
What a crock....

[goldstategop]

Exactly. What's the crime? And I checked, asthma inhalers are not against any law I know of.

[4mycountry]

To quote Voltaire, "Common sense is not so common".


Ain't it the truth now...

[ALASKA]

Unbefrickinlievable!! Had it been a severe reaction, I wonder what the reaction of the school would have been had she died and the BF hadn't share his inhaler?

[ladylib]

You're joking right? Did you read the article?

[solitas]

is there something WRONG with you?

hopefully YOUR "filthy runt" won't have an asthma attack with no one lifting a finger to help (while the "drug-addled teenage junkie" is peddling his junk to other kids).

[ladylib]

Hope the kid gets a jury trial. I can't imagine a jury convicting him.

THE LAW IS AN ASS.

At least it is in this instance.

[Renfield]

"Loan" (and therefore, "Loaning") is not a verb. "Loan" is a noun. The correct verb form is "Lend". Make a note of it.

[ladylib]

The nurse picked up the phone to call the cops but what did she do for the girl?

I hope that comes out in the trial.

I hope the trial brings the fact home to parents that public school officials don't give a rat's patoot about their kids. All they care about is covering their butts.

[microgood]

The parents should leave the state today and never look back (for the kid's sake).