‘Ditch Party’ Teens Face Suspension

The 13 Orange High School students involved in a drunken “ditch party” that sent three teens to the hospital face suspensions of up to five days, officials said Friday.

The punishments are in line with the Orange Unified School District’s strict zero-tolerance policies, which state that students caught drinking on or off campus face suspension, expulsion or transfer to another school.

A committee of school administrators and Orange police will ultimately decide the severity of punishment for each of the students.

School officials and police interviewed students and parents Friday as part of their investigation, said Frank Boehler, Orange Unified School District’s administrator for child welfare and attendance.

The school district released detailed information about its alcohol policies to the media soon after the Thursday morning party, which was broken up by Orange police. Boehler and other officials also provided a full report on the ditch party and the district’s zero-tolerance policies at a school board meeting Thursday night.

In addition to the investigation into alcohol violations, all 13 students have been referred to counselors at the district’s Truancy Learning Center. At the center, they will be counseled and required to attend substance abuse awareness classes at the Orange Police Department.

About a third of the students involved in the party were habitual truants, Boehler said. Several had excellent attendance records. The district has a relatively low truancy rate of about 1%.

Police were called to the house in southern Orange just after 10 a.m. Thursday after receiving calls from neighbors, who reported a loud, rowdy party in progress.

The three ill students were treated at a hospital and released to their parents.