TV Reviews : A Thought-Provoking Afterschool Special on Random Drug Testing

Random drug testing in public schools . . . a spray that parents can use on their child’s belongings to find evidence of drug use: Do we see our kids as drug-war victims or as enemies? Today’s thought-provoking “ABC Afterschool Special,” “Testing Dirty,” warns that we’re coming uncomfortably close to the latter. It airs at 3 p.m. on Channels 7, 3, 10 and 42.

Will (Christopher Daniel Barnes), a responsible high school senior, is caught up in his school’s new random drug-testing policy. He’s never used drugs, but nonetheless tests positive.

“Science isn’t a liar,” says the principal, discounting human error and fallible lab tests. Will is suspended pending a hearing.

His girlfriend Carla (Lisa Dean Ryan) is suspended when she refuses to be tested.

Mom (Alley Mills of “Wonder Years”) hires a tough lawyer (A Martinez), who insists that the school have Will’s urine sample retested. Medications such as decongestants can be mistaken for illegal drugs if the lab work is not thorough.

Before the truth comes out, however, Will’s college application is turned down and his initial test results are common knowledge.

“Testing Dirty,” written by Bruce Harmon and directed by Lynn Hamrick, is not an anti-drug testing tract--it’s an argument against futile, violative randomness. Drug testing can be used, it says, when there are signs of drug use, such as behavioral changes.

The point is also made that random testing often fails to net heavy drug users. If they are caught, punitive suspension without treatment does not remove the problem from society.