Fort Worth family fights school district over girl’s punishment for weed found in car
A Fort Worth family is fighting a local high school after their daughter was disciplined when drug-sniffing dogs detected marijuana under the seat of her car.
The family of 17-year-old Caroline Rhodes, who was kicked off the drill team and suspended, said they recently bought the used car, and the drugs do not belong to her.
“She is a leader in her school. She had a spotless record,” Caroline’s mother, Brandy Rhodes, said. “They could do the right thing here. They know she is innocent. We have a strong case.”
In an emailed statement, the school district said, “Northwest ISD does not comment on pending litigation. Additionally, the school district cannot comment on matters that relate to private student records or information, in accordance with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act.”
On Feb. 14, security officers searched Eaton High School’s campus with drug-sniffing dogs, according to a lawsuit filed by the family. The dogs indicated there were drugs inside Caroline’s 2010 Ford Escape SUV, which the family bought on Dec. 8 in a private sale.
Security officers searched the car and found what appeared to be a used blunt underneath one of the seats, the family’s attorney, Frank Hill, said.
The assistant principal called Brandy Rhodes and told her that per Northwest Independent School District policy, Caroline would be sent to the district’s Special Programs High School and attend the Disciplinary Alternative Education Program for nine weeks. Caroline was also was kicked off the drill team and told she would not be able to try out for the team next year, according to the family.
Brandy Rhodes had Caroline take a drug test, which came back negative, she said. She showed those results to the assistant principal, as well as paperwork proving they just bought the car and had not had it cleaned yet, she said.
Rhodes said while the administrators seemed empathetic, they would not change their decision. Rhodes filed an appeal of Caroline’s punishment through the district, but was worried Caroline would miss weeks of school and drill practice by the time the district reached a decision.
On Feb. 20, the Rhodes family contacted Hill, an Arlington attorney, and filed a petition for a temporary injunction against the district.
A ‘black and white’ policy
On Monday, a district judge granted the temporary injunction against the district, overruling the school’s original decision for at least 14 days. The district suspended Caroline instead, and she was pulled out of class and sent to in-school suspension, Rhodes said.
Hill immediately sent the school a letter demanding Caroline be allowed to return to class. By the end of the school day Monday, the district fully reinstated Caroline as a student and allowed her to rejoin the drill team, he said.
On March 6, a judge will determine whether or not to extend the injunction for the duration of the family’s case against the district.
However, Rhodes hopes the district ends the matter before then by approving her original appeal for Caroline.
Rhodes said she is not only defending Caroline, but she also disagrees with the school’s zero-tolerance policy. She said administrators told her the policy was “black and white and their hands were tied.”
The school’s assistant principal told Rhodes that the administration cannot “take evidence into account for one child or [the District] would have to take evidence for the kids who we know did it,” according to the lawsuit.
But Rhodes said NISD’s code of conduct allows the district to consider intent and a student’s disciplinary record when issuing punishments.
“She’s innocent,” Rhodes said. “I gave them a loophole and they chose not to take it, and my child is missing school and practices and performances.”
The NISD code of conduct says before a student is sent to DAEP, “administrators will consider whether the student acted in self-defense, the intent or lack of intent at the time the student engaged in the conduct, the student’s disciplinary history” and other mitigating factors.
The code of conduct also says a student must be sent to DAEP if they sell, give, deliver, possess, use or are under the influence of marijuana, but Rhodes said they have given the district enough evidence to show that Caroline did none of those things.
Caroline has taken the situation in stride and continued to support her drill team, Rhodes said. She went to a competition on Saturday as a spectator and watched the dances she would have been in.
“Her character is way better than mine,” Rhodes said. “On the way home she was melancholy. She said she wanted to be up there. She said, ‘That’s my spot. I worked hard for my spot.’ She’s a pretty good girl.”
This story was originally published February 24, 2020 at 6:30 PM.
