Third-graders caught smoking pot at school

[Velar Fricative]

I admit, I am clutching my pearls and gasping. No, not the children!!!

news.yahoo.com/california-third-graders-caught-smoking-pot-school-bathroom-220621280--finance.html

(Reuters) - Three third-graders were caught smoking marijuana in the boys' bathroom of their northern California elementary school last week in what the local police chief says marked the youngest pot bust he has ever encountered.



The three boys - two 8-year-olds and one 9-year-old - were caught last Thursday by another student, who informed school administrators, who in turn alerted local law enforcement, said Sonora Police Chief Mark Stinson.



Police officers detained the youngsters for questioning, then released them to their parents, Stinson said.



The police chief of Sonora, a picturesque "Gold Country" town in the Sierra foothills about 130 miles east of San Francisco, said the youngest person he previously knew of being busted for smoking pot was about 10 years of age.



A pipe and a very small amount of marijuana were seized in last Thursday's incident, he said, adding that the boys seemed to have had little smoking experience and did not appear to be under the influence when confronted.



Stinson declined to comment on anything the boys said, or on the possible origins of the pot, except to say that "it came from several sources."



He said the incident will remain under investigation to determine whether the boys could be considered criminally culpable. Under California law, no one under 12 is usually charged with a crime, but the boys could be subject to juvenile justice proceedings.



"The first step is - we have to determine whether they knew right from wrong," he told Reuters.



The superintendent of the local school district, Leigh Shampain, declined to comment on any details of the case but confirmed that students had been caught smoking marijuana in the school restroom last week.



Both he and the police chief said the case underscores concerns that legalizing marijuana for recreational use by adults in California would make it easier for minors to gain access to pot in the future.



Said Stinson, "It's something to think about."



California in 1996 became the first of 20 U.S. states to allow marijuana use for medical purposes, and a Field Poll in December found that 55 percent of registered voters supported expanding legalization to recreational use.



Colorado and Washington state approved ballot measures doing just that in November 2012. The last time such a proposal was put to California voters, in 2010, it was defeated.



(Reporting by Steve Gorman; Editing by Dan Whitcomb and Gunna Dickson)

[Deleted]

I'm clutching my pearls while saying WTF

[laurenpetro]

dude, G is that age.

*sigh*

[MrsAxilla]

At least they weren't drinking?

[StrawberryBlondie]

My nephew is that age. I can't imagine him even knowing what pot is.

[teacup]

I would cry real, hot, salty tears if my son did that.

And I'm judging because for real - where would they get that from? Parents, right? (Maybe an uncle? Aunt? Babysitter?)

[Deleted]

Mar 6, 2014 10:27:24 GMT -5 laurenpetro said:

dude, G is that age.

*sigh*

DS1 is too and I don't think he would have a clue about marijuana.

My biggest concern is him exploding batteries at school not smoking pot

[sunterp]

Mar 6, 2014 10:27:24 GMT -5 laurenpetro said:

dude, G is that age.

*sigh*

Our daughter is this age. WTF!

[thejackpot]

So disturbing. I would be mortified if it were my child.

[bugandbibs]

This is why your kids are never too young for talking about drugs, puberty, and other sensitive topics at an age appropriate level. You never know what they are going to be exposed to through friends.

[eclaires]

I heard this on the radio this morning and actually said out loud - what the actual fuck!?

[EloiseWeenie]

NO

[IIOY]

Before I had kids in school, this would have shocked me. Now that I'm around kids this age on a regular basis, it doesn't. The behavioral differences between second and third grade, particularly in boys, is massive. The third grade boys are far more willing to challenge authority and act out in ways that the second graders never would dream of doing.

ETA: in light of the story, I should probably add that the bathroom is where many of the behavioral problems occur. Girls going in groups have the bad reputation, and that may be true for older girls, but it's the boys causing all the trouble at our school. The answer is simple but is not necessarily pursued. Not for nothing, but our school suspended a third grader recently for his behavior in the bathroom. For context, this is a bit like the Pope disavowing part of Catholicism. It just doesn't happen.

[pamela]

Sounds like for at least one of these kids, releasing back to their parents was the wrong thing to do. Someone isn't parenting right such that they knew where pot was, were able to get it and knew what to do with it. Good job sending them back home to learn more.

[Alyssa]

Well that's a wake up call that your son is hanging out with the wrong crowd at just 8-9 years old. I would definitely want to speak with the parents of the boy who brought the pot to school.

[MrsAxilla]

Mar 6, 2014 11:12:33 GMT -5 pamela said:

Sounds like for at least one of these kids, releasing back to their parents was the wrong thing to do. Someone isn't parenting right such that they knew where pot was, were able to get it and knew what to do with it. Good job sending them back home to learn more.

Why do you assume they got it from their parents? I'll bet it belongs to the older brother of one of the boys.  

[pamela]

Mar 6, 2014 11:24:13 GMT -5 MrsAxilla said:

Mar 6, 2014 11:12:33 GMT -5 pamela said:

Sounds like for at least one of these kids, releasing back to their parents was the wrong thing to do. Someone isn't parenting right such that they knew where pot was, were able to get it and knew what to do with it. Good job sending them back home to learn more.

Why do you assume they got it from their parents? I'll bet it belongs to the older brother of one of the boys.  

Same difference to me if it came from an older sibling (why do you assume brother?). The parents didn't protect their child from it or other bad influences in their home.

[NitaX]

Mar 6, 2014 11:22:05 GMT -5 Alyssa said:

Well that's a wake up call that your son is hanging out with the wrong crowd at just 8-9 years old. I would definitely want to speak with the parents of the boy who brought the pot to school.

See, this is not really a wrong crowd thing for me. Kids get into all kinds of stuff that belongs to their parents and/or older siblings . Dollars to donuts this came from somebody's home stash, and the kids thought they'd try it out.

ETA: I totally agree that this could be some shit from their older siblings.

[decemberwedding07]

Mar 6, 2014 12:07:03 GMT -5 pamela said:

Mar 6, 2014 11:24:13 GMT -5 MrsAxilla said:

Why do you assume they got it from their parents? I'll bet it belongs to the older brother of one of the boys.  

Same difference to me if it came from an older sibling (why do you assume brother?). The parents didn't protect their child from it or other bad influences in their home.

I assumed brother just because I would think a 3rd grade boy would be more likely to want to emulate his big brother's behavior than his big sister's.

[MrsAxilla]

Mar 6, 2014 12:57:06 GMT -5 NitaX said:

Mar 6, 2014 11:22:05 GMT -5 Alyssa said:

Well that's a wake up call that your son is hanging out with the wrong crowd at just 8-9 years old. I would definitely want to speak with the parents of the boy who brought the pot to school.

See, this is not really a wrong crowd thing for me. Kids get into all kinds of stuff that belongs to their parents and/or older siblings . Dollars to donuts this came from somebody's home stash, and the kids thought they'd try it out.

ETA: I totally agree that this could be some shit from their older siblings.

Right.  If this story was about fifteen year olds, we'd be shaking our heads, not clutching our pearls.  

Now that I think about it, I bet you can scare holy hell into a 9 yr old much easier than a teenager.  

[taratru]

I'm not surprised. And I bet they got it from an older sibling...and I bet that older sibling is about 12.

[sandsonik]

I'm not a parent, so I dont know - do parents typically lock up beer, wine, and liquor, and would an 8 year old caught drinking induce pearl clutching?

My parents didn't lock up the booze. Luckily, straight gin or whiskey tasted really, really bad to a young palate.

Sent from my T-Mobile myTouch using proboards

[sushi]

I was that age when I first saw pot. I didn't try it till college, though. Access doesn't have to mean usage.

[PinkSquirrel]

Mar 6, 2014 13:43:15 GMT -5 sushi said:

I was that age when I first saw pot. I didn't try it till college, though. Access doesn't have to mean usage.

ITA, also, it's the same thing for alcohol.  Kids are exposed to it, see it and I'm pretty sure the youngest kid to ever try alcohol is significantly younger than 8 or 9.    When you compare it to alcohol, our one legal substance for impairment, it doesn't feel quite as bad to me especially because if you put pot and weed side by side alcohol seems significantly more dangerous