Independent drug test ordered for Colerain student accused of attacking teacher

Cameron Knight, Cincinnati Enquirer
Updated ·2 min read
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There will be more drug testing before the case of the Colerain High School student accused of attacking his teacher and a fellow student will continue.

The 15-year-old charged with both felony- and misdemeanor-level assault appeared over video conference before Hamilton County Juvenile Court Judge Stacey DeGraffenreid.

Prosecutors are seeking to try the teen as an adult, but the teen's lawyer, Clyde Bennett, said his client had unknowingly consumed drugs in a vape leading to his violent behavior.

Bennett has lobbied the court to have the vapes recovered by police tested and has asked for an independent drug test to be conducted on the teen's blood collected shortly after the attack.

Prosecutors said testing the vapes is unnecessary because experts in the Hamilton County Crime Lab said it is a misconception that marijuana is commonly laced with anything. They said the vapes were recovered the day after the attack and it can't be guaranteed that the same cartridges found by police were ones used by the teen.

The prosecutor said the teen's toxicology report speaks for itself.

Bennett said the toxicology report indicated his client's blood was positive for nicotine and marijuana metabolites. He said the Hamilton County Coroner's Office conducted the test, but it is his duty to represent his client and have the test double-checked.

Judge DeGraffenreid did not order that the vapes be tested but did order that the teen's blood be tested independently.

A bind-over hearing to decide if the teen should be sent over to adult court has been scheduled for April 19.

Bennett said that regardless of the outcome of the drug tests, the teen should not be moved to adult court.

"He is a 15-year-old with no criminal record," Bennett said. "He should be treated fairly. He is amenable to the care and custody of the Ohio juvenile court system."

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: New drug test ordered for Colerain student accused of attacking teacher