Angel Cincinnati said her daughter chugged vodka out of two water bottles in an unsupervised Capital High School homeroom last Wednesday.

"She hadn't had any breakfast," Cincinnati said. "A boy challenged her to a chugging contest." 

In her third-period class, the daughter tripped over a trash can and laughed about it on the floor, which tipped a teacher off that something was wrong. Later, paramedics arrived to take care of the 15-year-old.   

Cincinnati said she was told that her daughter and classmates were supposed to go to a supervised classroom, but some did not. A voice over the intercom system alerted students to go to another classroom because their usual homeroom teacher was absent, Cincinnati said.

"But nobody ever followed up to make sure they made it there," she said. "Their being unsupervised allowed this to happen from the very beginning."  

Her daughter is on a 10-day suspension and will miss her role in a school performance of "The Phantom of the Opera."

The girl also admitted to her parents that she drank alcohol out of water or Gatorade bottles at a Capital basketball game earlier this year, Cincinnati said. 

Cincinnati also said her daughter has indicated that this is not the first time students drank alcohol on school grounds, and said it happened at least twice before.

"I just would love to prevent it from happening again," she said.

Capital Principal Clinton Giles did not discuss details of the girl's incident. Still, Giles said he has never noticed a problem with alcohol use at the school.

Angel Cincinnati said her daughter chugged vodka out of two water bottles in an unsupervised Capital High School homeroom last Wednesday.

"She hadn't had any breakfast," Cincinnati said. "A boy challenged her to a chugging contest." 

In her third-period class, the daughter tripped over a trash can and laughed about it on the floor, which tipped a teacher off that something was wrong. Later, paramedics arrived to take care of the 15-year-old.   

Cincinnati said she was told that her daughter and classmates were supposed to go to a supervised classroom, but some did not. A voice over the intercom system alerted students to go to another classroom because their usual homeroom teacher was absent, Cincinnati said.

"But nobody ever followed up to make sure they made it there," she said. "Their being unsupervised allowed this to happen from the very beginning."  

Her daughter is on a 10-day suspension and will miss her role in a school performance of "The Phantom of the Opera."

The girl also admitted to her parents that she drank alcohol out of water or Gatorade bottles at a Capital basketball game earlier this year, Cincinnati said. 

Cincinnati also said her daughter has indicated that this is not the first time students drank alcohol on school grounds, and said it happened at least twice before.

"I just would love to prevent it from happening again," she said.

Capital Principal Clinton Giles did not discuss details of the girl's incident. Still, Giles said he has never noticed a problem with alcohol use at the school.

"If there is a major problem with alcohol it's escaped everyone's purview ... including myself," he said. He said in his 19 years at Capital, he doesn't recall an incident where a student was found under the influence of alcohol or drugs at school.

"This is the first time," he said. "It is regrettable, it is unfortunate. We're very concerned about the student involved."

Giles said the people who know what goes on at Capital High School know that this case is the exception, not the rule.

"If it became the rule, I'd be the first to go," he said. "We have no fear whatsoever that the reputation of Capital High School will be harmed irreparably by this."

While canines probably would not detect bottled alcohol, Cincinnati said drug dogs should periodically search the grounds at Capital.

"I was directed by the superintendent to arrange for that to occur," Giles said. "We will bring the dogs in because that's what I've been directed to do."

Kanawha school board President Jim Crawford said he had spoken Tuesday with Superintendent Ron Duerring, who indicated to Crawford that drug dog searches would be forthcoming at Capital.

Charleston Police will perform the searches, which will be quick and totally unannounced, Giles said.   

Still, Giles said drug dog searches are not what makes a school safe. Officials at Columbine High School, he said, performed drug searches and posted security cameras in the 1990s. In 1999, two Columbine students killed 13 people, wounded 23 others and then killed themselves.             

To contact staff writer Davin White, use e-mail or call 348-1254.