Mater Dei Principal Says Drug Testing Is Evenhanded

Mater Dei Principal Pat Murphy on Wednesday said that of the more than 4,000 drug tests administered since the private Catholic school implemented its drug-testing program in 1997, fewer than 35 were positive and no student tested positive on more than two occasions.

Murphy’s statements directly contradict those of a former school nurse who has accused Murphy of giving preferential treatment to an athlete who tested positive for drugs four times. She sued the school and the Diocese of Orange on Tuesday, alleging she was wrongfully terminated after confronting Murphy.

Murphy has denied the accusation, and archdiocese officials have been unavailable for comment.

According to Murphy, no students have been expelled under the drug-testing program. He said a handful of first-time offenders have undergone counseling and a smaller number of repeat offenders have had certain privileges revoked or been given a detention. Attending a school-sponsored dance is one example of a privilege that has been restricted, Murphy said.

A third violation would result in the offender being asked to withdraw from school, Murphy said.

Sheila Azzara, the former school nurse, contends in her suit that the athlete who tested positive four times was never asked to leave school. The lawsuit says the principal “failed to appropriately address the student-athlete’s positive drug findings and to implement the policies and procedures of the school’s drug-testing program.”

Murphy said he believes the program is fair and carried out evenhandedly. He declined to release documents relating to the drug program, citing student confidentiality.

Allan Gibson, whose son, David, played football at Mater Dei in the mid-1990s and is now with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, was among those who came to the school’s defense Wednesday.

“I’m astonished that such a claim is being made,” he said, recalling that his son was barred from playing a key 1995 Mater Dei game because he had not made up a detention. “And obviously, that’s nothing compared to a positive drug test. In my experience, Mater Dei really adheres to the rules.”

But others disagreed. When the teen allegedly failed his drug tests last year, it became well-known on campus. “[Parents] were surprised that nothing happened,” said one parent, who did not want to be identified.

The school’s drug-testing program was created, Murphy said, to give students “the opportunity to say no to drugs. The purpose is not to catch kids, to kick them out of school, it’s to give them an opportunity to say no.”

A computer selects students at random for testing, Murphy said, but students also may be required to undergo testing if they show signs of drug or alcohol use. “That has been done very, very rarely,” Murphy said.

Part of Azzara’s duties at Mater Dei included collecting hair or urine samples from students. She alleges in her lawsuit that she was relieved of these duties on Oct. 21 of last year. Don Edwards, an employee of Anaheim-based Integra Test, said his company began collecting on average 30 urine or hair samples a week from the school four days later.

The samples are tested by an independent laboratory called LabCorp, which also tests college, professional and Olympic athletes, Murphy said. Students who test positive are retested at least twice a month.

The school’s testing procedures are continually refined, Murphy said, by a committee that meets three times a year. The committee comprises attorneys, judges, medical personnel and a parent formerly involved with FBI and CIA drug testing.

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Times staff writer Jessica Garrison also contributed to this report.