A Bear River High School student was sent to juvenile hall this week after being arrested on campus allegedly in possession of several oxycodone pills, Nevada County Sheriff Keith Royal said Thursday.

Abuse of the powerful, prescription painkiller marketed under the name of OxyContin has grown rapidly among high school students, according to nationwide surveys by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency.

Jim Nieto, principal of the school in southern Nevada County, on Tuesday saw what appeared to be one student handing money to another student, and the two walked into a bathroom, Royal said.

"He found them both together in a bathroom stall. He said, 'What are you doing?' They said, 'Nothing,'" Royal said.

After escorting them to his office, Nieto found "several small white pills with an 'M' on them" in the clothing of one boy, a 16-year-old.

The boy was arrested for possession of a controlled substance without a prescription, possession of tobacco and a probation violation, Royal said.



Threats made at Ready Springs

In an unrelated incident, a 13-year-old boy was arrested at Ready Springs School, in the Penn Valley area, after allegedly threatening another student.

The boy allegedly "had threatened to shank a female student," Royal said, referring to stabbing with a sharp object.

A teacher allegedly found a 4-inch folding knife in the boy's possession on Tuesday, and the principal took him into his office.

The boy was taken to juvenile hall on suspicion of making terrorist threats, possession of a knife at school and drawing or exhibiting a weapon, Royal said.

To contact City Editor Trina Kleist, e-mail tkleist@theunion.com or call 477-4230.