[Dobbs:] The disturbing use of drugs among our youth has prompted some public schools to conduct random drug testing, but the practice faces increasing opposition from groups such as the ACLU, that say random testing is an invasion of privacy. Lisa Sylvester now has more on one school that's taking action to stop drug abuse.
[Lisa Sylvester, Cnn Correspondent:] More than half of all high school students have used an illegal drug, according to the federal government, and prescription drug abuse is up 40 percent in the last five years. But you don't have to tell that to the acting superintendent of the Hanover Park region schools in New Jersey. Last July, police arrested more than 50 Hanover Park current and former students in a prescription painkiller raid. That same year, three recent graduates died of drug overdoses.
[Karl Mundi, Acting Superintendent, Hanover H.s:] We only have our influence over students six hours a day, and it's important that we have some control because, let's be honest, the parents' support is not as consistent as it has been. Community options may not be as strong as they have been. So we need to step up and take more of an active role.
[Sylvester:] Karl Mundi says if he had his way, he would randomly drug test all of his students, but the Hanover Park school board is looking to test only those students who participate in athletics, other extracurricular activities, or students who want to park in the school lot. School-wide testing has run into opposition from groups like the
[Aclu. Graham Boyd, Aclu:] The drug testing does not help students. It doesn't prevent drug use, and it breaks down trust between students and school officials. So it's counterproductive.
[Sylvester:] Since 1985, the U.S. Supreme Court has expanded the list of students eligible for testing, but the high court has never ruled on whether all public school students can be tested. Lower courts have said school officials have not shown a sufficient need for broad testing, but advocates say drug testing has made a difference.
[Bill Judge, Attorney:] And if the goal is to deter children from using drugs, drug testing certainly has shown to be effective. It is working.
[Sylvester:] Those who favor drug testing say it's not about catching students, it's about identifying them and getting them help. National studies on the effectiveness of drug testing have been largely inconclusive. Some research suggests it is having an impact. One major study says it is not. But school superintendents say anecdotally it sure seems to work. They are told by students that drug testing gives them a way out when they're being pressured by their peers Lou.
[Dobbs:] And as you reported, treatment is critically important. And those resources being made available, a very important part of the equation here. Lisa, thank you very much. Lisa Sylvester reporting from Washington. Continuing our reporting now on "The War Within" and our national drug crisis, Mexican drug cartels are hauling larger and larger drug shipments across our borders. A record drug seizure on the high seas only the latest example of what has become a booming drug trade targeting America and Americans. Kathleen Koch reports on a massive 21-ton cocaine bust. Cocaine with an estimated street value of more than half a billion dollars.
[Kathleen Koch, Cnn Correspondent:] They're calling it the big fish that didn't get away, a freighter spotted Saturday night by a Coast Guard C-130 patrol aircraft 20 miles off the Pacific Coast of Panama. A Coast Guard team got the consent of the Panamanian government to board the ship and found a record 42,000 pounds of cocaine in the first two containers they opened.
[Capt. Charley Diaz, Uscg Cutter Sherman:] It was very obvious when they opened the doors that I mean, these bales were just piled high. It was almost up to the ceiling.
[Koch:] U.S. officials say the brazenly open way the drugs were being moved reflects the mindset of the drug cartels.
[Michael Chertoff, Homeland Security Secretary:] I still think they operate with the mentality of impunity, where they think they can get away with what they're doing. That is changing though.
[Koch:] Three Panamanians on the freighter and two Mexicans on shore were detained by authorities in Panama. Eleven Mexican citizens on board were taken into custody and were being transported to Tampa, Florida, to face charges in the case. The massive maritime bust comes on the heels of a seizure last week of $205 million in Mexico City. Authorities call that the world's largest single drug cash seizure.
[Karen Tandy, Dea:] DEA and our partners are shattering our own records as quickly as we make them. And more than that, we're shattering the drug organization's financial capability and operation ability.
[Koch:] There is concern that U.S. aerial surveillance and resources to patrol maritime drug trafficking lanes are down, but the Coast Guard says drug seizures for the last four years are up. And that, it says, is what counts. Kathleen Koch, CNN, Washington.
[Dobbs:] And that record $600 million drug seizure is only a fraction of the overall drug trade. The United States, with four percent of the world's population, bringing in 66 percent of the world's illegal drugs. The DEA seized 234 tons of cocaine headed our way in 2005. The DEA says almost all of the cocaine now entering the United States comes through Mexico. In point of fact, Mexico is also the principal source of methamphetamines and heroin, all coming across our border with Mexico. And two Border Patrol agents searching for drugs and illegal aliens in Texas were almost killed yesterday. Those agents found a raft with more than 300 pounds of marijuana floating in the Rio Grande River. The agents were fired upon from the Mexican side of the border. Those agents fired back and were not injured. Officials expect more incidents like this as drug smugglers take more drastic measures to import their drugs into this country. Coming up here next, we'll be talking with a Republican congressman. He has threatened to call for the impeachment of the president in the case of two former Border Patrol agents sent to prison on the testimony of an illegal alien drug smuggler given immunity by the U.S. Justice Department. Also tonight, a former vice president testifies before Congress. Al Gore takes his crusade against global warming to Capitol Hill. And the world's richest man takes his campaign south. He is pushing policies that would depress working wages for Americans. This time, Bill Gates in Mexico, encouraging more workers to cross our border. Stay with us for that, a great deal more, straight ahead. Stay with us.