8/20/2019 Asbury Park Press front page, Saturday, March 5, 2016

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Shore wrestlers

move on

LACEY - Middle school students here could be ran-domly tested for drugs and alcohol if Lacey school offi-

cials succeed in expanding a prevention program be-yond Lacey Township High School.

School administrators held an open forum on Thurs-day at Lacey Township Middle School, where morethan 40 parents gathered to hear plans to deter sub-stance use among seventh- and eighth-graders.

“We know that by instituting the random drug test-ing program, it starts the conversation with studentsand parents,” Superintendent Sandra Anthony said. “Idon’t think there are any, if many, middle schools inNew Jersey that are randomly testing middle schools.”

Under the proposed program, parents would enrolltheir middle school students to participate in the ran-dom testing. If a student’s test is positive, school offi-cials would contact parents and help the student intocounseling, Anthony said.

Many Lacey Township High School students al-ready participate in a similar program.

About 30 high school students who are involved inLacey sports, extra curricular activities, or who have

school parking privileges are randomly tested eachmonth. Students who fail the tests or decline testingcould be barred from activities or lose their parking

ARE 12-YEAR-OLDS

 TOO YOUNG TO DRUG TEST?

Lacey school board considering plans

to enact testing of middle-schoolers

ASBURY PARK PRESS FILE PHOTO

A K-9 officer walked his drug-sniffing dogthrough Lacey Township High School in 2013.

AMANDA OGLESBY  @OGLESBYAPP

ASBURY PARK PRESS APP.COM $1.50

   

 

SATURDAY 03.05.16

VOLUME 137

NUMBER 56

SINCE 1879

ADVICE 6D

CLASSIFIED 8D

COMICS 5D

LOCAL 3A

MOVIES 4D

OBITUARIES 8A

OPINION 11A

SPORTS 1C

WEATHER 10C

YOUR MONEY 4A

Lacey Middle School

drug testing proposal

» Random drug testing of 7th- and 8th-graders.

» Test for opiates, alcohol, amphetamines,benzodiazepine, cocaine, marijuana, PCP andheroin.

» Parents would have to enroll children in theprogram.

» Program is mandatory for high school stu-dents who want to participate in extracurricularactivities.

See TESTING, Page6A

SOUND OFF: Are middle

school students too young

to be drug tested? Tell us at APP.com

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Complete coverage of the

NJSIAA Individual Wrestling

Championships in Atlantic City.

IN SPORTS and at APP.com

TOMS RIVER - Does the state have the legal rightto seize oceanfront property for a beach replenish-ment project aimed at protecting the coast from fu-ture storms?

Lawyers representing more than 30 beachfrontproperty owners asked Superior Court AssignmentJudge Marlene Lynch Ford Friday to block the state’sattempts to acquire parts of their land to build 22-footdunes and expand beaches.

They claim the law allows the state Department ofEnvironmental Protection to take property for someprojects, but not explicitly for shore protection. Andthey argue the state is using eminent domain to con-vert private beaches into public ones. The cases,which question DEP’s authority to take the land, arethe first to reach Superior Court here.

Dozens of other beachfront homeowners havemade similar claims; a hearing on nine Bay Head

homeowners’ motion to block the DEP from condemn-ing their property is scheduled for March 18.

“The simple fact is, that the DEP has been deter-mined to get what it wants, by hook or by crook,” saidJohn H. Buonocore Jr., a Morristown lawyer repre-senting several of the property owners. “These home-owners have been put through the requirement of liti-

Judge askedto block state

from seizingShore propertyLawyers for  beachfront homeowners

question dune,expansion projects

JEAN MIKLE @JEANMIKLE

See DUNES,Page7A

They couldn’t say Gianna Isabella Petrone, 15, ofJackson, can’t sing.

Gianna exited the farewell season of “AmericanIdol” on a strong note, with a soulful rendition of AliciaKeys’ “If I Ain’t Got You” on Thursday’s episode. Alas,it was not enough as Gianna did not garner enough

votes, nor was she saved by the judges.“You have an incredible vocal gift,” judge Harry

Connick Jr. said. “It’s very rare to do what you do.”Gianna was gracious at the end, hugging her fellow

departing contestant, Olivia Rox, and remaining com-posed in her red pantsuit.

“I prepared myself to be in the bottom three be-cause I didn’t want to come up here and start crying,”said Gianna prior to the announcement. “I just wantedto sing my heart out.”

The remaining contestants are Avalon Young, Dal-ton Rapattoni, La’Porsha Renae, Lee Jean, MacKenzieBourg, Sonika Vaid, Trent Harmon and Tristan McIn-

Gianna Isabella Petrone, 15, of Jacksonexited the farewell season of “AmericanIdol” on a strong note, with a soulfulrendition of Alicia Keys’ “If I Ain’t Got You.”

‘American Idol’run of Jackson’sGianna is overCHRIS JORDAN  @CHRISFHJORDAN

See GIANNA, Page7A

Homicide investigators examiningknife purportedly found on O.J.Simpson’s former property. 1B