By Amanda McCord

Staff Writer

Two PLNU students were caught smoking marijuana and in the possession of mushrooms in the city parking lot on campus. The incident will result in expulsions of both students, said Mark Galbraith, director of Public Safety.

Public Safety received an anonymous phone tip on Jan. 20 that a car parked in the city lot seemed to be involved in suspicious activity, Galbraith said. After the call was made, Public Safety sent an officer down to the car. The students admitted to smoking marijuana.

The San Diego Police Department was not contacted even though the incident took place on the city’s lot because Public Safety serves as the primary responder to PLNU student-related incidents.

The individuals in the car were brought to the Public Safety office and tested for drugs. The results, which returned days later, came back positive.

Public Safety and Residential Life administrators conducted room searches in both of the offenders’ rooms that night, Galbraith said. Dean of Students Jeff Bolster authorized room searches of all those present in the vehicle. Both Bolster and Galbraith refused to say where the room searches were held.

Bolster also refused to comment on the incident based on the privacy laws established by the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). FERPA laws mandate that student disciplinary records not be made public. Violent or sexual abuse crimes, however, are not protected under FERPA.

All of the drugs were turned over to the San Diego Police Department (SDPD), where they are later burned, Galbraith said. No criminal charges were made against the students. While felonies are handled by the SDPD, misdemeanors are handled on a case-by-case basis.

“We want to keep the welfare of the students in mind,” Galbraith said. “A lot of how we handle the situation has to do with the attitude of the students.”