The Daily OrangeStudent group to promote sustainable substance abuse policies
By Shaun Janis
Posted: 10/15/09, 12:39 AM EST Section: Feature
As a freshman, Devon Stewart got so drunk that his friends had to call a Syracuse University Ambulance for assistance - an incident that placed him on disciplinary probation and opened his eyes to the drug and alcohol policies on college campuses.
"My friends and I decided we were going to celebrate because it was the last weekend before final exams," said Stewart. "We had been hanging out all day, and we had been drinking and at one point I started throwing up. My friends decided to take me home to Lawrinson."
Once he reached his dorm, Stewart passed out and was unresponsive. An SU Ambulance was called and a Department of Public Safety officer eventually entered his room to ask questions. Stewart said the officer accused him of drug possession and demanded that he get out of bed. When the paramedics arrived, they allowed the officer to continue his questioning before taking Stewart's vital signs. The officer and paramedics left Stewart's room only after he asked them to leave, he said.
"A few weeks later I got a letter in the mail saying I was put on disciplinary probation for lewd behavior, disorderly conduct and public intoxication," he said.
Stewart said he wondered why he was disciplined given the university's alcohol, other drug and tobacco policy, which states in Section 2, Part C, "In cases of intoxication and/or alcohol poisoning, the primary concern is the health and safety of individuals involved."
So Stewart, now a junior in the College of Visual and Performing Arts, decided to start a group to address similar problems.
The Syracuse University chapter of Students for Sensible Drug Policy is now meeting on a biweekly basis with the goal of igniting a discussion with university officials to alter the school's amnesty policy by Thanksgiving.
This is the first year that SU and the national organization of Students for Sensible Drug Policy have recognized the SU chapter. Twenty students gathered on Oct. 7 for the chapter's first meeting of the semester.
"My friends and I decided we were going to celebrate because it was the last weekend before final exams," said Stewart. "We had been hanging out all day, and we had been drinking and at one point I started throwing up. My friends decided to take me home to Lawrinson."
Once he reached his dorm, Stewart passed out and was unresponsive. An SU Ambulance was called and a Department of Public Safety officer eventually entered his room to ask questions. Stewart said the officer accused him of drug possession and demanded that he get out of bed. When the paramedics arrived, they allowed the officer to continue his questioning before taking Stewart's vital signs. The officer and paramedics left Stewart's room only after he asked them to leave, he said.
"A few weeks later I got a letter in the mail saying I was put on disciplinary probation for lewd behavior, disorderly conduct and public intoxication," he said.
Stewart said he wondered why he was disciplined given the university's alcohol, other drug and tobacco policy, which states in Section 2, Part C, "In cases of intoxication and/or alcohol poisoning, the primary concern is the health and safety of individuals involved."
So Stewart, now a junior in the College of Visual and Performing Arts, decided to start a group to address similar problems.
The Syracuse University chapter of Students for Sensible Drug Policy is now meeting on a biweekly basis with the goal of igniting a discussion with university officials to alter the school's amnesty policy by Thanksgiving.
This is the first year that SU and the national organization of Students for Sensible Drug Policy have recognized the SU chapter. Twenty students gathered on Oct. 7 for the chapter's first meeting of the semester.
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eyle
Nicolas Eyle
posted 10/15/09 @ 6:49 PM EST
Fear of being expelled/arrested/or otherwise seriously punished was what led one-time basketball star Len Bias' friends to not call for medical assistance when he had a seizure from cocaine. (Continued…)
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