Shock Waves

Shock Waves

College students--Drug use--United States

This document is a newspaper article by Michael Mello describing a brief background of a investigation of a drug arrest and the implications it had on five students it involved. The four of the five students were suspended and the rest were questioned. Some of the Mary Washington College students were in protest of the right to suspension without having first a trial to prove whether or not they are innocent until proven guilty.

Mello, Michael

Mello, Michael. "Shock Waves."

HIST 298, University of Mary Washington

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2 JPEGs

English

Fredericksburg, VA

The reverberations of Campus Security's "continuing investigateion" into the illicit drug situation at Mary Washington College spread throughout the MWC community last week as it became apparent that the Madison arrests could be only the beginning. The legality and general wisom of the arrest of five students, the suspension of four of them and the questioning of others were debated at impromptu meetings, in classrooms, in the SA Executive Cabinet and Senate. A petition drive was initiated and a rally was held.
     Tutt Stapp, President of the MWC Chapter of the National Organization for the Reforma of Marijuana Laws, has offered her organization's aid to the students who have been arrested and suspended from school. Stapp hopes that the state NORML will provide supportive legal and financial help. One legal advisor for NORML told Stapp that the five students should attempt to secure a legal injunction against their suspension. This advisor expressed the opinion that such a quest stood fair chanced of success.
     President Woodard met with the SA Executive Cabinet not long after the raid. At that meeting, Woodard informed the student leaders that a raid had occured and that students had been arrested. The President answered a few questions posed by tne Cabinet members.
     The Executive Cabinet then held a meeting of its own. SA Whip Eric Wootten made a motion that Cabinet issue a statement protesting the arrests and suspensions. SA Vice President Steve Schlimgen agreed tha some sort of protest was in order, but argued that none could be effective until all of the case's facts were known to the Executive Cabinet. The other members agreed, and Wootten's motion was tabled.
     Wootten, unsatisfied with the Cabinet's decision, drew up a petition. Aided by a number of other students,Wootten circulated his petition around campus. The document read" "On March 24, 1979, State, City and College Police entered Madison Hall with a warrant for the seizure of marijuana and related paraphanalia and the arrest of alleged distributors and possessors of marijuana. Since the trial has been set for Mary, the guilt of the accused students has not yet been established.
     "We, the undersigned students of Mary Washington College, do hereby protest and demand the immediate reversal of the unjustified suspension of said individuals."
     President Woodard told a gathering of Madison residents on March 26 that the petition would have "absolutely no effect" on his decisions in the case. Woodard said that "the suspension will not be reversed, even if you get every student on this campus to sign your petition."
Two resolutions relating to the Madison raid and its aftermath were suggested at the March 27 meeting of the SA Student S ate. One, introduced by Tracy Hudson (Hamlet House), called for the creation of a Senate body to investigate the legality of suspending a student before any sort of hearing is held. Hudon's motion was referred to the Senate Special Projects Committee. Special Projects will begin its investigation by contacting the American Civil Liberites Union.
     The second Senate motion was made by John Shumacher (Westmoreland). He suggested that the Senate officially endorse the Wootten petition protesting the suspensions; further, Shumacher wanted the Senate to make some sort of protest of its own. The motion was tabled (two to one) by a roll call vote; several senators expressed the opinion that it would be inappropriate for the Senate to issue an official protest until the Special Projects Committee completed its investigation.
     One response to the Madison arrests and suspensions seemed to some observers uncharacteristic of the Somnolent Seventies in general and of MWC in particular: a protest rally was planned. An organizational meeting on March 28 drew approximately 50 students. The group, led by Eric Wootten, agreed that a "gathering" would be held on Westmoreland Circle on Friday, March 30, at 3:45.
     The Westmoreland meeting opened with a suggestion that the rally not be held because of the possible detrimental effects it could have on the cases of the students presently suspended from school. One observer argued that "the guys are just scared; they don't want to make noise, and they don't want you to make noise." Another student responded that "what we are dealing with here is a principle-the principle of suspension without a trial. There comes a time when a statement of principle must be made. We are not protesting these individual cases; we are protesting the concept behind them."
     After a general concensus was reached that some sort of demonstration would be appropriate, the question became: exactly what is the arim of the protest? One student appeared to express the sentiments of the group when he said "we are not protesting the present drug laws; we are not even really protesting these busts. Rather, we are protesting the fact that these guys have been suspended without first receiving a trial of hearing. In effect, Woodard is saying that these students are guilty until proven innocent; at this point, it has not even been established that any illicit drugs were confiscated in the raid. The Police Crime Lab won't issue a report on the evidence seized for four to six weeks."
     The remainder of the meeting was taken up with the logistical problems of planning a successful demonstration: publicity, the procurement of speakers, the legality of the rally itself. The gathering ended on an optimistic note, with all present pledging to help prepare for Friday's event.

Newspaper

May, Grace

Williams, Megan