My name is Dave and I am in my third year as assistant dean in my high school. When asked this year by our new principal to continue on as assistant dean, she told me that she would mentor me, giving me an edge when applying for assistant principalships in our district. She would also help me complete my Principal's License. I readily agreed, and we began a good working relationship.

The year progressed well. On numerous occasions, she (Sharon) and I were able to handle some difficult issues involving students and teachers. I relied on her as a sounding block for handling certain touchy situations and she relied on me to give her a heads up if trouble began to brew.

My problem began in April. The school year was winding down and I was completing my Principal's Internship. Sharon helped me a great deal with this course. I would be applying for an assistant principal's position in a matter of weeks and Sharon had already set up time to help me with the questions I would be asked. During this time, I noticed that Sharon was coming in later and had problems focusing on a discussion. Her secretary even mentioned once that she smelled liquor on Sharon's breath. So she had a drink, who would know and what would it hurt ?

Later in the week, my car battery died and Sharon offered me a ride home. Actually, I live on her way home, so I agreed. I didn't think about whether she had a drink recently, I just needed a way home. Just like in a script from a B movie, Sharon caught the attention of a policeman who pulled us over. It was clear to him that she was impaired. He gave her a breathalyzer test and quickly called another policeman who arrested both of us. I was guilty by association.

I hadn't been drinking and the police let me go from the station almost immediately. I called a friend who came to pick me up and drive me home. I had no in tention of telling anyone about what happened. But the next morning, several teachers came up to me to confirm that Sharon was in some sort of trouble. Why were they coming to me? I found out that one of the teachers saw Sharon and me getting into the patrol car!

Our district has a new, untested policy, which requires that "...employees report, within 48 hours, any charge, indictment, infraction, complaint, conviction, or plea agreement for a) felony offense or b) misdemeanor office involving drugs or moral turpitude." Sharon would have until tomorrow to report the incident. Luckily, I would be at a workshop the next day and I feel that I wasn't really involved.

At the workshop, I was blind sided when one of the assistant superintendents came over to ask how things were going at my school. Fine, I assured him. He looked at me as if waiting for me to say more. I had been a teacher for a long time before going into the front office; silence didn't bother me. Then he told me that he had received an "anonymous" phone call saying that someone in my school had been arrested for DUI. Before I could protest, he told me that my name was mentioned as a passenger and he wanted to know what was going on. He told me that he believed the district's new policy was long overdue and he was going to enforce it.

I quickly thought of my options.

Questions:
1. How would this affect my application for an assistant principal's position?
2. How could I deny the arrest; he already heard about it from someone?
3. I could tell him what occurred, but I was also in the car. Would I lose my job altogether?
4. Was I being accused? Did I need to mount a defense?
5. The sausage I had for breakfast began churning in my stomach.