04/22/91
CONTACT: Stanford University News Service (650) 723-2558
STANFORD -- Stanford University is investigating claims by Stuart T. Reges, an instructor in computer science, that he has intentionally violated University policy on drugs and alcohol, the University general counsel's office said Friday, April 19.
Stanford President Donald Kennedy ordered the investigation, and the School of Engineering placed Reges on paid administrative leave pending its completion, said Susan K. Hoerger, senior University counsel.
In a letter dated March 28, Reges wrote to Bob Martinez, director of the federal Office of National Drug Control Policy: "In brief, I disagree with the government's anti-drug campaign and I am doing everything I can to make fools of you. I am particularly upset about the new policy Stanford has adopted in response to The Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act.
"I wrote a long letter to the Stanford Daily expressing my reasons for disagreeing with the law. I also mentioned that I am a drug user, that I think that drugs can be a positive influence on one's life, and that I refuse to obey the policy. I still carry illegal drugs in my backpack while on campus, in direct violation of Stanford's policy."
Reges also cited enclosed articles and letters in which he stated that he had advised an undergraduate to experiment with the drug MDA, an amphetamine derivative that produces euphoria. And in an electronic mail message to a Stanford administrator, he claimed to have used University funds to provide alcohol to students over 18 but under the legal drinking age of 21 at a University-related dinner.
Upon his return to campus Thursday, April 18, Kennedy received an April 12 letter from Martinez informing him of the correspondence. Martinez reminded Kennedy that federal law requires universities, as a condition of retaining eligibility for federal funding and financial assistance, to establish policies prohibiting illegal use of drugs.
"In all candor, I would find it beyond comprehension that a man who openly professes to have encouraged an undergraduate to ingest MDA could continue to enjoy faculty privileges at a pace-setting institution like Stanford University," Martinez wrote.
The Stanford policy on controlled substances and alcohol reads, in part:
"The unlawful manufacture, distribution, dispensation, possession, and/or use of controlled substances or the unlawful possession, use, or distribution of alcohol is prohibited on the Stanford campus, in the workplace, or as part of any of the University's activities. . . . Violation of this policy may result in disciplinary sanctions up to and including termination of employment or expulsion of students. Violations also may be referred to the appropriate authorities for prosecution."
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