Three North Central students busted for smoking pot in dorm
BY BILL BIRD wbird@stmedianetwork.com October 18, 2012 8:38PM
Updated: November 22, 2012 6:26AM
Three students of North Central College in Naperville are free on bond and awaiting trial, after allegedly being found smoking marijuana inside a dormitory room.
Jonathan D. Adkins, 20, of Lombard; Nicholas C. Smith, 20, of Glenview; and Jacob H. Steele, 20, of Peru, were ticketed under a city of Naperville ordinance for possession of less than 30 grams of marijuana, according to DuPage County Circuit Court records. Smith was also charged with unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia, records showed.
Adkins, Smith and Steele were charged just after 4 p.m. Tuesday, after Naperville police were sent to the Patterson Hall dormitory at 180 E. Chicago Ave.
Sgt. John Westlove said a campus security agent called police after noting the odor of marijuana wafting from one of the rooms. The men, when confronted by police, admitted having and using the marijuana, Westlove said.
Court documents indicated Smith and Steele have no record in DuPage County. Adkins in June 2011 was cited by Naperville police for underage consumption of alcohol, and was placed on court supervision and fined after being found guilty of that charge, according to records.
Jim Godo, North Central’s assistant vice president of marketing and communications, on Thursday said college officials were aware of the incident and had initiated contact with police.
“It’s the college’s policy, anytime drugs are involved, we will be in touch with the Naperville Police Department,” Godo said.
Students are obligated to follow all campus rules and regulations as outlined in the college’s handbook, Godo said. They are held responsible “for conduct that goes against the grain” of those regulations, he said.
Godo added college officials have a judicial process for dealing with those who violate school regulations or local laws. He declined to say what that process entails or what sort of penalties Adkins, Smith and Steele might face should they be convicted of the charges against them.
