Two high school students were recently arrested here in San Diego when folding knives were found in their vehicles in the school parking lot, they were also suspended from school. They were both good students, and after a lot of pressure from the public and media attention regarding how unfairly the students were being treated the charges were dropped and the students were allowed to return to school. But they and their families went through a lot of stress and expense in the process. One of the students has plans to join the military after graduating, and if he had been convicted of the charge he would have been denied admission.
In general, being convicted of a "weapon on school property" offense can have a devastating effect on your future plans and prospects. Good luck getting into the college of your choice with such a conviction.
Now in regards to how the knives were found in the students vehicles, cops were going randomly through the parking lot with a drug-sniffing dog, and the cops said the dog "hit" on the students vehicles, despite the fact that no traces of illegal drugs were found, and the students had no history of involvement with illegal drugs. My attorney tells me that it's very easy, and common, for LEO's to lie and say that their drug-sniffing dog "hit" on a vehicle as justification to legally search it. It's a very easy lie to tell, because a defense attorney can't question the dog under oath in court about what they did or did not actually smell.
Craytab brought up a very good point about the parents. When the subject involves a minor, knives, the law, school rules, and how a bad decision can negatively affect the students future and cost the parents a lot of money, I think the parents should be at the forefront of the conversation. I don't think a decision should be made based on the opinions of a bunch of total strangers on an internet forum who have absolutely nothing to lose in the matter.
