3 Students Expelled in Drug Case

Three Los Alamitos High School students were expelled Monday in the wake of an incident last month in which some students took a prescription drug that caused them to pass out during class, officials said.

Los Alamitos Unified School District trustees voted at their meeting Monday night to expel three of the eight students who may have been involved in the use, distribution or sale on campus of Soma, a muscle relaxant.

Three students were hospitalized Oct. 18 after apparently taking an overdose of the drug. Two were treated and released from the hospital the same day, and the other was released the next morning.

A police investigation led to the arrests of three students suspected of selling the pills on campus. They were the three expelled.

The board voted not to expel the other students but placed three of them on probation. The other two were referred to drug-abuse counseling programs. None of the students were identified.

“This was something that we took very seriously,” board President Del Clark said. “Hopefully this will be in the best interest of the students.”

Though Los Alamitos High School officials had worried that some students might be abusing prescription drugs, none of those involved in the Soma incident had a history of substance abuse, Assistant Principal Dave Dorrans said.