CALIFORNIA IN BRIEF : OXNARD : Weapons Search on Campuses Begins

In a crackdown on students carrying guns and knives to school, the Oxnard Union High School District began using hand-held metal detectors to search students for weapons. Supt. William Studt announced his decision to use metal detectors on Feb. 25 in response to escalating violence on school campuses in Ventura and Los Angeles counties. During the past 18 months, the district has expelled 37 students for carrying knives and three for possession of guns. Another student was recently expelled for firing a gun into the air at Ventura High. Studt said he has received more than 100 calls of support from parents and only one letter from a family complaining that the searches were intrusive. “This is no guarantee that there will not be weapons on campus,” Studt said. “However, we believe it will be a strong deterrent.”