The number of students busted for pot on and around campus has risen since the Department of Public Safety gained the ability last year to issue citations. University officials say more smokers, not increased policing power, are to blame for inflating marijuana-bust statistics.
Typically, marijuana use among students in residence halls soars during the beginning of fall term, but campus police have interrupted smoke sessions more often this fall, said Department of Public Safety Director Tom Hicks.
The number of students smoking pot has even surpassed the number abusing alcohol so far this year, Hicks said.
“The marijuana use is off the charts,” he said.
DPS has issued 266 marijuana citations since January 2006, exceeding last year’s 229. There have been 46 pot-related occurrences so far this school year, although it is not clear how many individual students were cited in each incident.
Hayward Field and the Hamilton residence hall complex are frequent sites of reported marijuana activity, according to DPS logs.
Officials did not pinpoint reasons for the increasing trend, although they speculated that more students are coming to college having already toyed with the drug.
An overwhelming majority of students caught by campus police get referred to Student Judicial Affairs, which may mandate that a student take a University-sponsored drug class or write a paper about the negative effects of pot. Only six students cited with misdemeanor marijuana charges received Eugene municipal tickets, which can cost hundreds of dollars.
Students trying to buy pot fare better than those trying to purchase alcohol because most dealers won’t demand identification, Hicks said.
If toking up with friends becomes habitual in high school, the behavior tends to continue into college, where students live without parents’ noses sniffing in their business, University officials said.
Tobacco-fighting efforts geared toward teens may now be escalating teen pot smoking, said Laura Blake Jones, University director of Student Life.
Michael Eyster, Interim Vice President for Student Affairs, said he doesn’t know if the movie “Animal House,” which depicts rambunctious college behavior partially filmed on the University campus, influenced students’ perceptions of the University’s party scene, but he said some students begin fall term expecting lax rules toward drinking and drugs.
When a residence hall assistant or a DPS officer knocks on a residence hall door with pot aroma seeping into the hallway, students do not have to answer, Eyster said. They have the same protection living in the residence halls as anywhere.
“The Fourth Amendment applies across the board,” Eyster said, adding that students who don’t answer the door will still probably receive citations through Student Judicial Affairs because the University can check housing records.
Eyster said DPS officials typically respond to marijuana tips because RAs are not authorized to confiscate pot and smoking paraphernalia.
Contact the crime, health and safety reporter at [email protected]
Officials report spike in pot busts on campus
Daily Emerald
October 23, 2006
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