BOARDMAN High school student faces trafficking charge

The student has been suspended from school.
By JOHN W. GOODWIN JR.
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
BOARDMAN -- Township police have arrested an 18-year-old Boardman High School junior they say was found Thursday with marijuana on school property.
Jose Manuel Estremera of Forest Park Place is charged with misdemeanor trafficking in marijuana in the vicinity of a school. He is due in Boardman area court at 8:30 a.m. Monday for arraignment.
According to the police report, Estremera offered to sell the marijuana to a fellow student in an English class, but Patrolman Rick Balog said further investigation showed there was no negotiation of money for a sale.
Anonymous tip: Balog said officers, responding to an anonymous tip, went to the school to question Estremera about drugs that may have been in his possession. Estremera, reports said, told officers he had the marijuana tucked in his right front pants pocket.
Balog said Estremera is being charged with trafficking because of the way the marijuana was packaged in three small plastic bags. The charge is a misdemeanor because of the relatively small amount and because it is marijuana.
Estremera could face stiffer penalties, Balog noted, because he was found with an illegal drug on school property.
Suspended: Schools Superintendent Don Dailey said Estremera has been suspended from school for five days while police and school officials investigate the situation. He said there is a consideration of expulsion from school pending the outcome of the investigation.
"If in fact a student is caught with drugs in Boardman schools there is immediate action taken," said Dailey. "We have not had an abundance of these problems. I think students realize one place where there are strict guidelines and discipline for such actions is in the school."
Dailey said drug use as a whole is "a reflection of our society," but most students take heed to informational teachings about drugs. He said Boardman has classes and programs in place at every educational level to make students aware of the dangers and consequences of drug use.