COUNCIL SEES UNANSWERED QUESTIONS IN HARTSELLE DRUG FLAP

HARTSELLE -- The majority of City Council members here continue to talk
about William Booth's speech March 25.

Booth is the head baseball coach at Hartselle High School.

With his players standing in the back of the council's meeting room, and
supporters of the baseball program occupying most of the seats, Booth
scolded the council.

For almost 30 minutes, he outlined the success of the baseball program and
accused the council of "spreading rumors."

He painted a picture of a flawless baseball program and made the council
seem wrong for questioning how school officials handled the results of two
drug tests.

"This is incredible," Booth said. "Adults spreading rumors. That is
incredible. I hope that you will evaluate the rumors."

What is not clear to councilmen is whether Booth knew that one of his
players had failed a drug test.

This is one of the questions council members want the school board to answer.

A council majority said they will attend a Monday school board work
session. The meeting will be at 5 p.m. in the school system's new office on
College Street. The public may attend.

School Board Chairman Susan Puckett said the board didn't schedule the work
session for the City Council, but added that the school board intends to
respond to any concerns the council members have.

The council members remained silent at the March 25 meeting, although a
majority of them supposedly knew that one baseball player had tested
positive for marijuana and that school officials planned to take no
disciplinary action.

"There are two things that several of us want the school board to answer,"
Mayor Clif Knight said. "We want to know how this meeting (Booth's) with
the council took place. We want to discuss the inconsistency in statements
made by school officials."

At first, Superintendent Lee Hartsell denied that either player failed a
test, but he admitted later that one player tested positive for marijuana.

The players collapsed in school March 4. At the request of Principal Jerry
Reeves, both submitted to drug tests. Rumors about the results of the tests
circulated in Hartselle. The council felt that school officials were not
going to act.

Councilman Allen Stoner publicly called for an independent investigation.
Booth, the baseball team and baseball supporters attended the council's
next meeting.

"What he did was made a mockery of city government, and I still don't
appreciate it," Stoner said.