The former starting quarterback for Hibriten High School's varsity football team was arrested last week on drug charges and has been kicked off the team.

Jamichael Odell Walton, 18, of Wilson Street NW, Lenoir, has been charged with one count of misdemeanor possession of marijuana, according to an arrest report filed by the Lenoir Police Department.

According to the report, Walton was arrested Nov. 5 around 5:30 p.m. at Hibriten High School by LPD school resource officer Eddie Keefer after he was found to be in possession of 1.8 grams of marijuana.

Walton was released with a written promise to appear in court. He is scheduled for a hearing in Caldwell County District Court on Dec. 8.

School officials would not comment specifically on Walton's case, but principal Lewis Wright said Tuesday in a telephone interview that "school board policy ... requires suspension. In all cases that involve drugs, we follow the school board policy. We followed the school board policy in this case, just as we have in every other case."

According to Hibriten High's student handbook, a student caught in possession of an illegal drug can be suspended from three to 10 days, with a recommendation to the superintendent that the student be suspended for the remainder of the school year.

That long-term suspension can be waived if the student and parents agree to successfully complete a drug intervention program.

In addition to the short-term suspension, the student is also barred from participating in athletics or extracurricular activities for a minimum of 30 days.

That term can be extended at the discretion of the school's principal, according to the student handbook.

Walton was one of the stars of Hibriten's football team last season, earning all-Caldwell County honors by passing for 1,052 yards and 19 touchdowns, and rushing for 612 yards and eight TDs during a 12-2 campaign.

However, Walton got off to a rough start for the 2009 season -- he was disqualified from the Panthers' season-opening game against Freedom, then suffered a dislocated right elbow on Oct. 2 against St. Stephens.

Walton missed three games because of the injury, but was back in uniform for Hibriten's game against Fred T. Foard on Oct. 30. However, he was not on the sidelines of the Panthers' final regular-season game against Alexander Central on Nov. 6.