Garden City — There's a trend of increased drug use among younger children in parts of southwest Kansas, according to some criminal justice officials here.
A voluntary statewide survey administered last year by Greenbush Education Center found that Finney County sixth-graders had smoked three times as much marijuana in a month as the state average.
Eighth-graders smoked marijuana around 11 times in a month, compared to state results claiming only seven.
As for alcohol consumption during a month, sixth-graders said they drank an average of 15 times, with eighth-graders claiming 30 times.
"More younger kids are abusing drugs. There's not been hundreds, but I've seen a few," Assistant Finney County Atty. Lois Malin said. "Now I'm seeing 11- and 12-year-olds."
The trend has presented a problem for many school districts, whose drug education programs are mostly targeted at middle school youths and not primary grade youngsters.
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